


Honey, this is what it's like to be famous

by Lynn1998



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Depression, Dysphoria, F/M, Genderfluid Keith, M/M, Model/Musician AU, Other, Self Harm, TW: sensetive contents, Trans Male Keith (Voltron), drug mention, eating disorder mention, eh tagsssss, mentions of past suicide attempts, model keith, musician lance, trans keith
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-13
Updated: 2017-12-15
Packaged: 2018-08-14 19:30:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 32,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8026126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lynn1998/pseuds/Lynn1998
Summary: Lance is a hot new upcoming artist and Keith is a versatile model with a bad attitude. Fame has a way of bringing the most unlikely people together.





	1. Carñi-oh no

**Author's Note:**

> Another klance fan fiction woo surprise
> 
> I can't remember if I edited this or not.

 

"I'm a simple guy really. I passed high school with the grades I needed and I'm going to college and all that jazz, so I'm not really super special. Uh…I learned guitar when I learned to walk and picked up ukulele along the way. I've played trumpet since sixth grade and did marching band in high school and whatever…nothing extraordinary."

"Your album, 'Blue', has quite a few songs that suggest you've experienced quite a few things. Would you mind elaborating on that?"

     Lance blinked at the interviewer. There were two of them and one of them was writing down every word he was saying as well as digitally recording it. The other one who was asking the questions looked at him waiting for a response. He laughed nervously and scratched the back of his neck. He was starting to regret writing those few promiscuous songs at three am.

"Gee…um, w-which one?" He stuttered. The woman asking him questions smirked and looked at her sheet.

"You have one song in particular called 'back'…"

"Oh no," he muttered.

"And there's a line that says, 'we all know baby got back, but _mijo_  that ass gave me a heart attack," she continued.

"Shoot me now please," he whispered and covered his face with his hand.

"So, mijo means son in Spanish, right?" The interviewer, Amanda, asked. Lance sighed and took his hand away.

"Yeah it does."

"Care to elaborate what you meant there? There's been a lot of talk about your somewhat controversial lyrics," she said. Lance coughed.

"Well…um…y'see…" he pause and made some gestures with his hands. "'Back' is a song…about butts."

"Yes."

"And…like the difference between a girl butt and a guy butt," Lance stammered.

"What kind of differences?"

"Well less differences and more…just that I like them?"

"You like butts?"

"Yes I very much enjoy butts."

"That's very interesting."

"Yeah…"

"There's another song-"

"Oh god."

"-and it's called 'white bean burrito'-"

"Kill me."

"-and a lot of people say this is a song about-"

"Sucking dick, yeah it is," Lance confirmed. The interviewers laughed and little and Lance blushed deeper.

"It's a very creative song," Amanda commented. Lance shrugged.

"I didn't think anyone would be asking me about it, yet here we are."

"So I'm assuming you're not straight, right?"

"Yeah I'm bisexual," he told her.

"That's interesting. Is that a new development or…"

"Eh…yes and no. I dated girls in middle school and experimented in high school a little."

"That's wonderful. Kinda explains a couple of your songs, doesn't it?" She teased. Lance laughed a little awkwardly.

"Yeah I didn't really hide that very well did I?"

"Not at all," Amanda nodded. The other interviewer closed his notepad and looked up at the other two.

"Okay I think that's good enough," he said with a smile and stopped the recording device on the table.

"Yeah?" Lance asked. Amanda nodded and they all stood up.

"Yup. Thank you so much for this opportunity. It was a pleasure interviewing you," Amanda said and reached out to shake his hand. Lance accepted her handshake and grinned.

"Oh no, the pleasure was all mine. It's crazy actually being interviewed by a magazine," Lance replied.

"Well we might be the first, but I can tell we're definitely not the last," she assured him.

     Lance nodded and then shook the other interviewer's hand. They left with good wishes and goodbye's and then Lance left the building and walked through the parking lot to his car. He typed his address in to the gps on his phone and pulled out as soon as he figured out where he was going. It was sunny out and he was grinning as he pulled his sunglasses from the glasses compartment. He drove with the windows down and sang along loudly to the radio. It was some Ariana Grande song, but he didn't care what was on. His endless giddy energy made him bounce around and sing nonstop.

     Soon his phone was ringing and he turned the radio down at a red light. He smiled at the contact name and pressed the speaker button as his phone hung out in the cup holder.

"Yo, buddy, what's up!" Lance said a little too excitedly.

"Nothing much, dude. How was the interview?" Hunk asked on the other end. The light turned green and he drove.

"Dude it was super awkward but it was great! I can't believe I actually got interviewed!" He gushed.

"I can. 'Blue' is totally blowing up on the radio," Hunk replied.

"I know right? It's crazy! I heard it yesterday on the way to class and it was crazy."

"You did a good job on those lyrics. It totally deserves its spot on the top five."

"Holy shit, top five? I thought it was top ten!" Lance exclaimed.

"I checked it this morning. It just jumped to number four over night," Hunk informed him.

"Holy fucking shit this is insane! It's all thanks to those awesome drums and techno beats you threw in there," Lance said.

"Oh stop, you're making me blush," Hunk replied jokingly.

"Dude, I'm so glad 'Blue' was the one that got big and not something like 'back'. The interviewers totally railed me on those dirty ones," he told Hunk.

"Heh. I knew those would come and bite you in the butt. Good thing your mom doesn't know how to work iTunes or else she'd be smacking you and cleaning your mouth out with soap," Hunk replied.

"God I hope she never finds out about 'Carñi-oh!'," he groaned.

"That one was _bad_ dude. Like 'white bean burrito' was pretty bad, but 'Carñi-oh!' was just plain filthy."

"I know."

"Like people might think it's only guitar with only semi-decent recording because it's 'sensual' and stuff but in reality it was because I refused to work on that one with you," Hunk said.

"It's bad but I'm kinda proud. Like it's sounds good in both Spanish and English, and it's a one hundred percent Lance Sanchez McClain original," Lance pointed out.

"I will admit it sounds pretty good, but I think the English version is a little censored if I'm gonna be honest," Hunk confessed.

"The translation is always gonna be off, dude."

"I guess, but it still sounds better in Spanish."

"Most things sound better in Spanish," Lance responded.

"That is very true my friend," Hunk agreed.

"Besides. No one really pays attention to that song, and like…" Lance trailed off as words on the quiet radio stood out to him.

"Hold on."

"What is it?" Hunk asked.

     Lance carefully turned up the radio and listened to the sound of his own voice on the radio. It was still weird to hear himself on the radio, but this time it wasn't the usual song that was blowing up at the moment. Instead it was a different song with an acoustic guitar and his low voice murmuring lyrics he never thought he'd hear again in public. His eyes widened as it got to the chorus and he had to slam in to the breaks to stop at the red light.

"Holy shit!" He gasped and panted as he was transfixed on the radio.

"What? What is it? Are you okay?" Hunk asked.

"I'm on the radio!" Lance shouted.

"Yeah…you sound terrified. What's wrong? You've been on the radio all week-"

"No, dude, _'Carñi-oh' is on the fucking radio!_ " He nearly screamed.

" _What!_ "

"I'm listening to it right now, here," he held his phone up to his radio just as the chorus ended and the next verse went on.

"How in the fuck…" Hunk gasped from the phone.

"Dude, my mom is gonna fucking _kill me_ ," Lance groaned.

"It's a good thing you don't live at home anymore…right?"

"Yeah!" Lance agreed and drove when the light turned green. He turned in to the streets of apartments as he thought about how many different ways his mother might end his life.

"Maybe she won't hear it?" Hunk tried sounding hopeful.

"As if. She finds a way to text me every time she hears me on her car radio on her way to work."

"Well…maybe it won't be that big?"

"Maybe…" Lance sighed and switched the channel. The same melody spilled out except in Spanish and Lance nearly had a heart attack.

"Fuck! It's being broadcasted on the Spanish channels too! What the hell!"

"Dude, you are so fucked," Hunk said. Lance pulled up to his parking space outside their apartment and groaned.

"Kill me now before my mom does, please," he begged.

"Nah, I think I might wanna watch," Hunk decided. Lance pouted and turned off his car.

"Rude."

"I think it would be more rude to actually be the one killing you."

"Not if I ask you too."

"I mean…I'm not ready to take a life."

"Bro."

"And honestly I don't want yours."

"Okay, _that's_ rude," Lance said.

"Whatever dude. Just get up here the tacos are getting cold."

"Fine."

 

* * *

 

     Lance mindlessly scrolled through his YouTube page and checked through the small amount of videos he's posted with Hunk. They filmed a little music video for "Blue" with Lance's iPhone, but it was nothing more than random muted clips of them dicking around with the track on top of it. For some reason it was close to three million views and he didn't even bother with the comments at that point. Nearly eight hundred thousand people were already subscribed, and he had a couple acoustic covers from the album up as well. 

     Hunk didn't care much for the image so Lance was free to do whatever he wanted on that channel. There was even a video of Lance making an actual white bean burrito and that was close to a million views already. It was kinda ridiculous, and he's already been contacted to make an official Vevo music video and channel. He was still considering it, but he didn't have much of a choice since his manager told him it was either Vevo or nothing. Still nothing was an option, but either way he couldn't monetize his own channel. Vevo was the only channel that could make money, which he didn't really mind. It just meant his viewers could still watch him without annoying pesky ads.

     The tan boy yawned and snuggled closer to his blanket. He moved on to his Twitter which was absolutely blowing up. People would at him all the time telling him how much they loved the album, and he would try to respond but there were _so many of them_. He couldn't possibly keep up, and he even got verified within the week "Blue" went viral. It was a little over-whelming and he more or less avoided his Twitter now. He quickly tweeted about how his mother would kill him about 'Carñi-oh!' and he was immediately met with sympathy and praise about the song in both English and Spanish. A smile found its way over his face and he responded to a couple tweets when his email went off. 

     Before his email was a vacant and sad place. He only got spam, Facebook reminders, and Twitter notifications so he mostly just ignored it. When he checked it for the first time in months the other day he learned that there were quite a few people waiting for a response from him. _Important_ people who wanted to offer him  _money_. Usually his manager took care of it all, but sometimes the emails went to both Coran _and_ Lance. He really liked those times.

     This time it was extra exciting. Lance instantly recognized the name of the magazine and read through the email. In his half-asleep state he couldn't tell if it was asking him to be on the front cover or if they wanted to put him under cover like a spy…maybe he shouldn't be staying up so late. Turned out staying up late wasn't the worst thing in the world because the next minute his phone was ringing with Coran's name on his screen. He yawned and then picked up the phone.

"Sup," he greeted.

"Oh good, you're up! Did you get the email from Lion magazine?" Coran asked.

"Yeah, I read it. I'm a little too tired to understand what it says," Lance replied.

"Well it's asking for an interview, and they also want you on the cover. Isn't that exciting?" Coran exclaimed.

"Whoa, really?" Lance slurred.

"Yes! I also got a call from the Fimmy Jallon and he wants you on the show."

"That's…crazy. Yeah I'll do it," Lance hummed.

"Are you okay? Should I call you in the morning?" Coran asked. Lance shook his head to wake himself up.

"Nah, I'm fine. Late show. Fimmy Jallon. Me on that. Yes," he replied blinking his eyes wide.

"Right…he wants you to perform-"

"Blue. Right. Everyone does. Got it," Lance interrupted and yawned again.

"He actually wants you to perform. 'Carñio'," Coran informed him. Lance sighed and groaned.

"Oh my god how did that get so popular so fast?" He mumbled.

"The moment the radio edited the curse words out it was everywhere," Coran said.

"My mom is totally gonna kill me…especially if she hears the Spanish version," he muttered.

"I take it you don't want to perform it on the late show?" Coran asked. Lance sighed again and rubbed at his eye.

"I'll do it…but if you don't hear from me again it's because my mom murdered me," he replied.

"Well I'll make sure you have a good funeral," Coran assured him.

"Thank god," Lance said sarcastically.

"I emailed Lion magazine with your class schedule and everything and they'll respond with which time they like best. Until then you should get to sleep," Coran advised.

"Yeah I probably should," Lance agreed and started closing tabs on his laptop.

"I'll forward you their response when I get it and you can call me if you have any questions," Coran instructed. The tan boy closed his laptop.

"Got it. Night, Coran," he murmured.

"Night!"

 

* * *

 

"I'm sorry, mama! I didn't know it was on the radio…No! I-it's just a song! I swear!" Lance cried over the phone. Hunk whistled a low tone as he heated up some leftover pizza in the microwave.

"Mama…No, no! It's just a song, okay? There's nothing more to it!…Ma, are you serious?" He sighed and groaned. "…no, I'm not a virgin anymore," he grumbled. Hunk stifled his laughter and Lance glared up at him from the couch.

"Sorry," Hunk whispered. Lance shook his head and returned his attention to his mother.

"No…no, mom-" he took a deep breath. "Mom, it's _fine_. Just…yes I do know what I'm singing. _I wrote the song, mom_."

"Harsh," Hunk said and took the pizza out of the microwave. Lance winced and there was audible shouting on the other end.

"Mom, please-I'm sorry! Yes, I know you're not stupid-" he winced again and she shouted some more. "Mom I'm turning twenty one in a week. I'm not a kid anymore."

"She's gonna start crying," Hunk told Lance and sat next to him on the couch. Lance sighed as Hunk's prediction came true and face palmed himself.

"Ugh…I'm sorry, mama…yes, I know it's hard…I miss you very much," he said calmly. Hunk nodded and pointed to his own neck to refer to Lance's own golden cross necklace. The skinny young man pulled the chain from under his shirt and pulled the pendant back and forth.

"Yes I wear it everyday and use it to pray every night…yes, I did ask for the lords forgiveness after I wrote that song…I love you, mama," he said.

"Good job," Hunk whispered. Lance nodded.

"Okay, mama. I'll talk to you later…love you too. Bye," Lance hung up the phone and let out a deep sigh. "That was way too hard."

"Tell me about it. My mom called while you were asleep and screamed. She made sure that was all _you_ and that I didn't help make that dirty ass song," Hunk replied.

"Your mom is scarier than my mom sometimes," Lance muttered. Hunk nodded.

"And she _knows_ how iTunes works."

"We can never escape these women."

"Honestly. We'd be hopeless without them."

"True."

"Although my mom did like 'white bean burrito'," Hunk told him.

"Shit, no way I called myself a puta like fifty times in a row in that song."

"Yeah that's why she liked it."

"Your mom either loves me or hates me and I can never figure out which one it it," Lance sighed.

"A little bit of both. Although she didn't like 'back', but that was because mijo was the only Spanish word you used in that entire song," Hunk said.

"Remind me to write a song in Spanish that _isn't_ about sex so your mom likes me again."

"Oh trust me. I will."

"Funny how those are the songs people care about. That album has a lot of stuff on it and those crazy songs are only like a fifth of our actual stuff."

"I guess it's just our sex obsessed culture," Hunk sighed.

"I guess so…" Lance nodded in agreement.

     They were silent for a while as Hunk chewed on his pizza. Lance yawned from staying up too late and opened his phone to check his email. As Coran promised he had forwarded Lion magazine's response. He grinned.

"Oh hell yeah," he said and showed his phone to Hunk. "I totally got a photoshoot for _Lion magazine_."

"Whoa, no way," Hunk said and read the email carefully.

"I know right? This is so crazy, dude. Do you wanna come?" He invited. Hunk shook his head.

"I'm fine just being in the background dude. As long as I'm getting paid you can be the star," Hunk assured him. Lance pouted in response and Hunk rolled his eyes. "I also have class at that time, so I literally can't go too."

"Unbelievable."

"Believe it."

"I hope you know that in this interview I'm telling them about you and how amazing you are at drums and music," Lance said as he exited his mail and tapped his phone app.

"Whatever. Just don't give out my Twitter," Hunk replied. Lance rolled his eyes and shook his head before calling Coran.

"Afternoon, Lance! I'm assuming you got my email," Coran greeted almost instantly.

"Yeah. I didn't expect them to schedule so soon! Is it really tomorrow or am I reading that wrong?" Lance asked.

"You read that correct! They're sending a jet tonight to come fetch you and fly you up to New York-"

"Holy shit, New York?" Lance interrupted with wide eyes. Hunk's own eyes popped out as well.

"Yes. They'll have you back before you next class that evening and they'll schedule an over the phone interview while you're at their headquarters," Coran explained.

"What the fuuuuuuuck," Lance grinned.

"Is that okay with you?" Coran asked. Lance stumbled over his words for a moment, but quickly found them.

"I-I mean, yeah! Totally! Do I need to like pack clothes? An over night bag or…?"

"It's an over night flight so you'll be sleeping on the plane. You'll only be there for a small amount of time, so I don't think you need to pack anything. They did set you up with a room in a hotel since you'll be flying in a jet and it won't take as long as a commercial flight, so if you want you could bring some pajamas and a change of clothes."

"Okay…thank you, holy shit. This is crazy," Lance bubbled as he bounced on the couch with excitement.

"Get used to it, Lance. Once your term is over you'll be booked," Coran promised. Lance laughed and grinned at Hunk.

"I'll try and keep my schedule opened then."


	2. Luck

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The best of luck and the worst of it.
> 
> Lance sometimes has both.

     New York was unbelievable. Lance had never been to the city that never sleeps, but the moment he could see all the glimmering buildings from the jet he was too excited to sit still. When he got to his hotel it was close to one am and he had too much energy to go to sleep. He ended up passing out around three and was woken up around seven by his phone alarm. Not a minute later Coran called him and said he would be at the studio soon and the car should be there in a half an hour to pick him up. Lance mumbled coherently enough to tell Coran he understood and quickly took a shower before getting dressed and enjoying some food from the lobby.

     When the car came Lance almost fell asleep again, but quickly woke up with the driver offered him some food and drink. He politely declined the alcohol but accepted the muffins. It was a rather quick drive to the studio and he could see Coran on the phone next to the front door. He grinned and got a little ahead of himself and swung the door open. It took him point five seconds to get out of the car and point four seconds after that to slam in to another person.

"Jesus Christ," The person growled as his coffee slipped down the front of his shirt.

"Oh shit, I am so sorry!" Lance apologized quickly and looked at the dark spot on the already dark shirt. The man glared at Lance and he instantly caught sight of navy eyes.

"Watch where you're going," he muttered and turned to walk in to the studio. Lance sighed and face palmed himself.

"Lance? What the hell just happened?" Coran asked.

"I'm in New York for less than eight hours and I already pissed someone off," Lance sighed.

"It's okay. New Yorkers are all moody, so it's not your fault. C'mon, lets go inside. The photographer is waiting and you have a night class tonight!" Coran reminded him.

     Lance followed Coran in to the elevator and up to the tenth floor. He kept his eye out for the dark-haired guy he pissed off earlier, but he was easily distracted by the scene around him. Flashes, photographers, clothes, assistants with coffee and clipboards were swarming around him and he couldn't help but get lost in the activity. Thankfully Coran lead him right to the photographer taking test shots on the white background. He smiled the instant he saw them.

"Welcome! Lance, is it?" The photographer greeted. Lance nodded and his hand was grabbed and shook.

"My name is Manuel, and I will be photographing you today," he announced.

"Cool! That's great," Lance smiled.

"Wonderful. Glad you think so. I've been listening to your album ever since the magazine told me I was going to photograph you, and let me tell you: I'm excited," Manuel said.

"Y-you are?" Lance stuttered.

"Of course! Your lyrics are so inspiring. I instantly had a vision," he continued.

"What kind of vision?" Manuel chuckled.

"A good one," he winked. "I'm almost done setting up, so you can go over to Nina and she'll give you the outfit you need," he instructed pointing to a woman next to the clothing rack.

"Okay…" Lance murmured and followed Coran to Nina. She handed him a hanger and he looked at it confused.

"This is only a pair of jeans…" he said.

"Yup," Nina confirmed.

"Is there another hanger with like a shirt?" Lance asked.

"No, but you do have these shoes to put on," Nina told him and handed him a shiny new pair of converse. Lance blushed.

"So I'm gonna be…shirtless?" He asked. Nina nodded.

"Yup."

"Don't think anything of it, Lance. They'll touch up anything you don't like," Coran assured him. He sighed and Nina pointed him in the direction of where he could change.

     The jeans were at least comfortable, but he never liked the feeling of new shoes. When he laced up the sneakers and crossed his arms in a lame attempt to keep himself covered. While he wasn't normally self conscious about being shirtless, he felt a little stupid being half naked for a photo. It was probably because of 'Carñi-oh!'. That song will be the death of him.

     When he stepped back in to the main room Manuel was chatting with a beautiful dark woman with light hair. The moment he saw Lance he turned towards the tan boy and grinned.

"Perfect! We have a model in makeup right now, but I wanted to get a few individual shots first," Manuel told him. Lance nodded awkwardly and shifted his weight.

"Uh…is there a reason I don't have a shirt?" Lance asked. Manuel laughed.

"Oh boy. You can't just release a song like 'Carñi-oh!' and not show some skin," Manuel explained. Lance sighed

"My mom is going to kill me…again," he muttered. Manuel patted and squeezed Lance's shoulder.

"Don't worry about your mom. She'll be okay," the photographer assured him.

"She's gonna have a heart attack," he deadpanned. Manuel snorted.

"Don't worry! You're mother will be okay. Now go ahead and step out and let's take some pictures," Manuel said.

     Lance obliged and did as Manuel asked. At first he felt a little stiff and awkward posing for pictures half naked, but eventually as he worked more with Manuel it got a little easier. It turned out he was a bit of a natural when it came to modeling thanks to his charismatic personality and rather handsome face. He was a tad self conscious about how skinny he was, but Manuel told him not to worry about it and that he looked great. Soon he felt comfortable and didn't mind being shirtless anymore. In fact it was kinda growing on him.

"Wonderful, is the model ready?" Manuel called.

"On their way," the dark woman with white hair replied as another woman walked from the makeup desk. 

     She had a little longer than chin length dark hair with dark eyes and a pale skin. Her legs were long and exposed, and her top consisted of a tight strip of black fabric covering her chest and pushing up her breasts. While she wasn't exactly curvy she was rather breathtaking. She looked beautiful, as most girls do, but she also had an air to her that made Lance shiver. Her navy eyes locked and Lance and they widened. The tan boy was clueless and smiled at the pretty girl as she sighed and shook her head.

"You look stunning as always," Manuel grinned and looked her up and down. 

     The girl merely gave him an impatient smile and stood next to Lance. She was a couple inches or so shorter than Lance, and wore a pair of converse like he was. He noticed she looked rather unhappy and gave him a curt glare before facing the camera and adjusting her black fingerless gloves. Lance was too stunned to say anything and could only stare at her. She looked…familiar.

"Okay, Keith…" the model gave Manuel her attention, and Lance furrowed his brows. That's an interesting name for a girl. "…I want you hang off of Lance, okay?" The model did as instructed and wrapped her arms around Lance's neck.

"Now Lance…wrap your arm around her waist," Manuel continued. Lance did so and tried to keep his hand on the black denim of her high waisted shorts.

"You can be a gentleman later. Right on the waist," Manuel said. He moved his hand up an inch and discovered the model…Keith…had extremely soft skin. She also smelled fantastic and her hair brushing his shoulder felt like feathers. There were a few flashes. He wasn't even looking at the camera.

"Now…Keith, honey, let your right arm down and touch his chest," Manuel told her. She did so and Lance felt chills run down his spine at the feeling of her glove and fingers run over his skin. "Arch your back a little more and turn your shoulders towards him. Keep your eyes here…" Keith did as she was told and pressed her shoulder closer to Lance.

"Lance, keep your hand on her waist," Manuel reminded him. He realized he had drifted back to the safe spot on the denim and went back to her waist. Another couple flashes and this time he was looking at the camera.

"Now move it to her back. Directly on the center…" Lance did and another flash went off.

"Perfect! You two are wonderful together," Manuel said. Lance smiled and looked back at Keith to find her still looking away. Seems like he was getting the cold shoulder for something.

"Okay. Now, Keith darling, bring up your leg, and Lance hold under her knee," he told them. 

     Lance blushed a little, but Keith did as she was asked and pressed her leg against his hip. He fumbled with his fingers to grab her leg and accidentally pulled her closer. Finally she looked at him, but this time it was a death glare. He swallowed hard and loosened his grip on her knee.

"S-sorry," he stuttered. She rolled her eyes and looked back at the camera.

     A lot more flashes went off and Lance only looked at the camera for a few of them. His attention was redirected to the side of Keith's face as she tilted her head at different angles. She looked incredibly familiar, yet he couldn't quite place his finger on where he saw her before. He had definitely seen her eyes before, and the hair looked somewhat familiar. Something about her scowl…

"Look at the camera, idiot," she whispered. Her voice sounded different from what he expected, but it didn't phase him too much.

"Have we met before?" Lance asked. Her eyes widened and then she glared at him.

"Are you serious?" She growled. Lance blinked.

"Um…I don't…"

"You really are an idiot," she growled and turned her attention back to the camera. Lance blinked.

"Okay. That's enough for now. Keith, you're back in makeup, and we'll pick up where we left off when you're done," Manuel announced. 

"I'm confused…" he said as he let go of her leg. Keith stormed off to the makeup table and Lance was stubborn enough to follow her.

"W-was it something I said? What's going on?" Lance asked. Keith rolled their eyes as they pulled out the makeup wipes and cleaned off their face. "But like you look familiar so…have we met before or something?"

"You're unbelievable," Keith snapped as one of the makeup artists helped clean off their face.

"I don't know what I did!" Lance replied. 

     Keith shook their head and accepted the change of clothes that was handed to them. They walked off and Lance sighed helplessly. The makeup artists giggled a little and he looked at them.

"Am I crazy or something? I dunno what's going on," he said.

"Keith gets a little moody, but he'll come around," one of them said. Lance frowned at the new pronoun.

"He?"

"That's what he mostly goes by. Sometimes he goes by they, and he only goes by she when he's working," another one added.

"S-so…wait, what?"

"He's genderfluid, so he goes by whatever he feels like. It's mostly he though," the first one told him.

"Gender…" Lance trailed off as a  _very_  familiar man with navy eyes and dark hair emerged from where Keith disappeared. That same glare from earlier was locked on him and it sent a different kind of chills down his spine. He definitely looked different without the makeup and the outfit, but those piercing eyes were unmistakable. Finally he connected the dots. "…fluid…"

 

* * *

 

     The rest of the photoshoot was awkward needless to say. It didn't help that Manuel wanted Keith to pose all over Lance in rather sexual positions. The whole time Keith looked amazing, but Lance could sense he was still rather hostile. Regardless Lance was in a trance. Watching Keith and glancing at the camera whenever he was hissed at. It was difficult to stay focused when there was someone so breathtaking all over him. 

     By the time they were done Lance was fighting a semi and Keith was absolutely seething. The taller watched as Keith grabbed his old clothes and changed in to his coffee stained shirt from earlier. Guilt instantly clouded over Lance as he was handed his own clothes. The dark skinned woman with white hair from earlier walked over to Keith and handed him a water bottle. He accepted it and kept his back facing Lance. Her turquoise eyes met Lance and she gave him a sympathetic smile. Suddenly Coran popped up next to him and started chattering away.

"You did wonderful, Lance! Amazing! Now, we have to get you back to the hotel and on the jet as soon as possible. I emailed your professor about your activities today and she said if you're late you're responsible for…where are you going? Lance…Lance?"

     Lance ignored his manager and swiftly made his way across the room. He wasn't entirely sure what he was doing, but he was determined to do it whatever it was. The woman noticed him as he stood behind Keith and she tapped the model's shoulder. He glanced at the woman and then turned over his shoulder to look at Lance. His scowl was still there and he took another drink of his water before speaking.

"What do you want?" He demanded to know. Lance cleared his throat and he offered his clean shirt.

"I'm uh…sorry about earlier…with the coffee," he apologized. Keith glanced down at the clean shirt in front of him and then back to Lance.

"Apology accepted," he said and took the shirt. He handed the dark skinned woman his drink as he unfolded the shirt.

"A-and I'm also sorry about not recognizing you earlier…I didn't know about…" he trailed off as Keith peeled off his stained shirt.

     Underneath was what looked like a skin colored half tank top. The breasts Lance thought he saw earlier had been flattened down to his ribs, and soon the sight of pale unblemished skin was covered again by the grey material of his baseball shirt. He shifted the material around until it hung comfortably on his frame. It wasn't too big, but it wasn't the tightest fit. It looked…casual.

"About what?" Keith asked placing his black teeshirt over his shoulder and taking his water bottle.

"About your…gender…thing…" Lance said awkwardly. Keith lifted a brow.

"My gender thing?" He questioned. Lance swallowed hard.

"Yeah…I mean…you're not…a guy or a girl-"

"Wow, you're a genius," Keith deadpanned. Lance sighed in defeat.

"I dunno. I'm sorry, I've never really met someone who's not cis," he said.

"You probably have. You just didn't realize it," Keith told him.

"Yeah, um…anyways…I feel like I owe you. Like coffee or something?" He said. Keith blinked at him slowly.

"You mean like a date?" He asked unimpressed. Lance blushed.

"N-no! I mean if you want it to be a date then it can, but I just feel bad for spilling your c-coffee and I think I should get you a new one or something," he stuttered. Keith chuckled and smiled. Lance was a little taken aback from how genuinely attractive that was.

"Alright. I'll let you buy me coffee," Keith allowed. Lance smiled.

"Great. Are you free right now?" He asked. Keith looked at the dark skinned woman and she nodded. He then looked back at Lance.

"I think I have an hour to spare," he said.

"That's great. I'll-"

"Lance, we need to go. Your plan is leaving soon," Coran interrupted suddenly. Lance looked at the ginger over his shoulder.

"What? No. It's not leaving until later," Lance replied.

"If you want to get to your class on time you need to be on that plane before noon. It's almost eleven, and the car to the airport is going to be at the hotel in half an hour," Coran insisted. Lance looked guiltily at Keith and found the model giggling.

"Tell you what. The next time you're in New York give me a call," Keith said holding out his hand to the dark skinned woman. She promptly placed a card in his hand which he gave to Lance. He looked down and read the name and number on the white paper.

"I'm really sorry-"

"Don't be. I'll see you another time," Keith dismissed and walked away with who Lance assumed was his manager.

"Okay…see ya," Lance murmured. Coran sighed.

"C'mon, Lance. Let's get you back home."

 

* * *

 

     A long loud groan oozed out of Lance as he laid on his apartment floor. Hunk was busy shoveling cereal in to his mouth as he watched his friend moan and groan. The moment he got back from class he plopped down and stayed there the whole time. It was rather amusing, but Hunk could tell he was more than just jet lagged.

"So how was the big city?" He asked.

"I'm an idiot," Lance muffled against the carpet.

"Just figuring this out?"

"Yes and no."

"That sounds like a Segway to a longer more complicated answer."

"It is."

"Alright," Hunk sighed and moved to sit on the ground next to Lance. "Spill."

"I met a model in New York," Lance announce and turned over on his back.

"Let me guess. She's out of your league," Hunk replied.

"One hundred percent, but like…she's not…he…they…genderfluid…" Lance sighed. "I'm confused."

"Wait, what?"

"The model I'm talking about. He's genderfluid," Lance told him.

"Whoa, really? That's hella cool, dude. I gotta friend who works at the beauty supply shop and they're genderfluid too."

"That's nice, but like…I totally pissed him off and then…ugh."

"Uh oh. What did you do?"

"…I spilled his coffee on him…"

"Wow."

"…and then I didn't recognize him when he modeled with me."

" _Wow_."

"I'm just…"

"An idiot."

"Yeah," Lance nodded. "But I got his card."

"His card?"

"Yeah. With like his name and his number," Lance said pulling the card from his pocket. He showed it to Hunk and he nearly spat out his cereal.

"Holy shit! You modeled with Keith Kogan?" He sputtered taking the card. Lance frowned.

"Yeah. Do you know about him?"

"Know about him? Dude he's only blowing up right now! He's been on nearly every magazine cover for the past month!"

"Really? I didn't recognize him."

"I can't believe you pissed him off! How the hell did you get his number?" Hunk asked.

"I gave him my shirt and offered to buy him a new coffee," Lance replied.

"Dude, holy shit."

"He's like…really fucking hot," Lance said blushing a little. Hunk looked up at him.

"Dude…you're so lucky."


	3. Chat me up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance is back in town

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm slowly updating this bc I only have 7 chapters written RIP I'm busy srry

     Keith Kogane really was everywhere. He was on every magazine Lance came across the rest of his college term. Thankfully Coran didn't schedule any out of state things while he was in the middle of finals, but after he did the interview with Lion magazine he was in every magazine stand and every link on Facebook. It was weird seeing the touched up photos of himself and Keith. He didn't look nearly as awkward as he felt, and Keith looked absolutely stunning as usual both femininely and masculinely. Some of his classmates asked him about what it was like modeling with Keith, and he was thankful most of them didn't actually read the interview.

     From the small amount of interviews he's been in so far it was a dissection of what all his controversial songs were about. Sure there were questions about what inspiration for the majority of the album, and if he worked alone or with a friend. He liked those kinds of questions better because it was awkward trying to explain that 'Carñi-oh!' is explicitly about fucking and 'White Bean Burrito' is about sucking dick. Still, Lion magazine's main questions were about 'Carñi-oh!' and that was not helping how much his mother was actually going to kill him. She called him the moment she saw the magazine and read the interview and he hated every moment of it.

     Literally right after finals Lance was shipped off to New York again. According to Coran he was booked until his next term and the only days he had free were Christmas Eve and day and maybe New Years. Hunk was invited to come too, but he wanted to stay with his family during the break. Lance kinda wanted to stay, but he had an adventurous force that was pulling him on the plane. That and the constant reminder he kept in his wallet that a certain model was waiting to get coffee with him.

     Lance sighed and stared out the window of the plane as he thought about those midnight navy eyes again. Each time he saw a picture of the model it was nothing like actually being in his presence. The ink on the page in his local CVS was like a small pinch. Standing in front of him in a studio in New York was like a punch in the gut, and for some reason Lance kinda like getting beat up.

     His fingers flipped over the card a couple times as the plane landed. It was around midnight when it landed and this time his hotel was a little further away. He figured it was probably too late to call Keith, but he was too energetic from the time shift. There was about a couple hours difference from his home and New York so his brain was still convinced it was ten pm instead of twelve am. So instead he did a little instigating online. He didn't get far before the car pulled up to his hotel and Coran lead him to their room.

     The moment his head hit the pillow he made an Instagram so he could stalk Keith's. Before he only really cared about Facebook for family stuff and Twitter for friends and apparently now his "following". The moment he set a profile picture and his name he searched the username he got from the Internet and smiled when he found those familiar navy eyes.

     Keith's Instagram looked like half-assed selfies and pictures his manager took of him when he wasn't paying attention. There were a few pictures from photoshoots of him actually modeling and lance's favorite was the black and white photo of him crouching in heels and little black outfit. Some of his selfies were awkward, but for the most part they were just plain endearing. He figured they were awkward because his manager was probably forcing him I do it. Coran had been nagging him to get an Instagram for weeks and he wasn't gonna tell his red headed friend about his account for at least a month.

     Lance was too engrossed in scrolling through Keith's pictures that he didn't even notice people were already following him. He cursed as it easily reached the thousands and sighed as it only kept coming. How the hell did that happen? He didn't even post anything. He sighed and then finally turned off his phone before deciding to go to sleep.

 

* * *

 

     Lance sat idly on the stool on stage. He was tuning his guitar as the others were testing the sound. His fingers trembled slightly as they passed the strings, and his heart was pounding. This was the first time he was performing live and it was killing him just waiting in front of the audience. The interview before went along pretty good, but he obviously had some pre-show jitters. Thankfully that part was over and it was only a little longer before Lance could go back to his apartment and rest.

     New York was full of nonstop energy. His day consisted of photoshoots and interviews and now he was ending it on TV. It was his first time on TV and he was having a hard time wrapping his head around the fact that literally millions of people were watching him. The live audience consisted of probably a couple hundred, and that was nerve-wracking as it was. He could feel sweat drip down hIs nape as he looked across the sea of people. That made it one thousand percent worse and Lance was grateful for the sudden tug on his sleeve. He looked down and found a short boy with his microphone.

"Oh, hey," he said. The boy was probably 18 and had short brown hair along with large circular glasses. He adjusted his eyewear.

"Hello. Care to do a mic check?" He asked offering the mic to Lance. The tan musician smiled and accepted it.

"I just speak in to it?" He asked. The boy nodded.

"Yes. To make sure it sounds good," he replied. Lance grinned and looked out to the audience. He held up the microphone to his mouth.

"My best friend eats beans," he spoke in to the mic and grinned wider at the vibrations from the speakers. The boy bit his lip to hold back a laugh.

"Wonderful-"

"You say something," Lance prompted and held the microphone out to the boy. He hesitated, but eventually leaned forward.

"…I too…eat beans…" he murmured. His quiet voice projected out in to the studio and Lance laughed. He brought the mic back to him.

"I guess that makes us…best friends," Lance said. He held it out again.

"…I guess so…bean friend." Lance laughed louder and patted the boy's shoulder. He smiled and laughed a little himself.

"What's your name?" Lance asked.

"M-my name? You wanna know my name?" He stuttered.

"Yeah. You seem cool," Lance nodded.

"Oh uh…people call me Pidge," he replied. Lance held out his hand and Pidge accepted the handshake.

"Nice. I'm Lance," he replied.

"I…know," Pidge said. Lance blinked and then laughed again.

"Oh shit. I'll never get used to that," he grinned. "Are you working the sound?"

"Yeah. I've been in the back making sure it won't blow up," Pidge responded.

"Nice. Hey! Coran!" He called. The red headed manager came out from back stage.

"Yes?" He replied.

"I want Pidge to be my sound guy whenever I'm performing live from now on. He's cool," Lance told him. Pidge's eyes went wide and his face went red.

"On it," Coran faced Pidge. "We'll discuss and trade information after the show."

"O-okay…that's…okay," he stammered.

"We're live in one minute!" Someone announced.

"Oh shoot, I gotta get backstage!" Pidge hissed. "Good luck!" He called as he dashed behind the curtains. Lance chuckled and little and Coran smiled.

"He does seem cool," Coran agreed. Lance shrugged.

"He likes beans."

 

* * *

 

     "Carñi-oh!" was the song Lance performed that night. Of course it got even more popular than Blue because it was about sex, but Lance learned to just accept it now. It was getting him money so he had no reason to be upset with it. He was still gonna die at his mother's hand, but she was getting tired of it too. By now she wasn't calling him in rage, so he figured they were at peace with the damn song.

     The second Lance entered his hotel room he plopped down on his couch. He was so exhausted from all the photos and questions and cheering that he almost fell asleep right then and there. If Coran hadn't coaxed him in to taking a shower he surely would've woken up with a messed up neck. Thank god for that sensible fidgety ginger. The shower made him feel a lot better and it made his bed feel even cozier when he plopped down and snuggled under the sheets. He was only seconds from blissful sleep when his phone went off. He groaned, but checked it anyways.

     Across his screen was dozens of notifications from Instagram. Lance sighed and unlocked his phone to see what happened. Apparently Coran posted a photo of Lance from the performance and it was going crazy with likes and comments. His followers were up again and Lance quickly tapped in to his settings to turn off his notifications. When he tapped back in to Instagram he looked at who recently followed him and blinked at the most recent follower.

     Suddenly the small slip of paper tucked in his wallet on his nightstand had a weight to it. Keith's username was front and center with his profile picture clear as day. Lance quickly glanced to his wallet and then back to his phone. He curiously tapped the icon to make sure it was the right one and sure enough Keith Kogane followed him back on Instagram. Did that mean he was awake? Did that mean…Lance should call him?

     But what if he doesn't pick up? Maybe he just followed Lance because Instagram suggested it or something. Or perhaps his manager was on his page instead and it wasn't actually Keith following him back on Instagram. What if Keith was asleep? Lance couldn't call him now if he was a sleep, that would be rude. What if-

     Keith liked the photo. He popped up in the flood of notifications and he liked the photo. How could Lance tell if it was actually him? Coran posted to his account so who's to say Keith's manager didn't post and use his social media.

     Lance tapped to scroll through Keith's photos and blinked when he saw the most recently posted photo. It was from five minutes ago, and it was Keith sitting on the couch watching the television. The crazy part was that _Lance_ was on the TV screen. Keith was _watching_  him…holy shit. Did that mean he should call him? Maybe he should let Keith finish watching…yeah, no he should definitely call.

     He plucked the number from his wallet and quickly tapped in the number on the paper. His finger hesitated over the call button, but when he finally got the guts to do it the phone didn't ring long. At first he was surprised that the ringing stopped, but he was even more surprised when he heard Keith's voice.

"Hello? Who is this?" Keith asked on the other side. Lance hesitated, freaked out, and then hung up. He stared at his phone with wide eyes and then groaned.

"Lance? Are you okay in there?" Coran asked peeking his head in.

"Yeah…I'm fine," he sighed and covered his face with one of the small decorative pillows. His phone went off and he checked it to see the same number he dialed not five minutes ago. He groaned again and answered.

"Uh, hey…"

"Who is this?" Keith demanded to know. Lance shivered at how stern his voice sounded.

"It's Lance…that idiot who spilled coffee on you a couple months ago," he confessed. There was silence, and then there was a chuckle.

"Why the hell did you just hang up on me?" Keith asked. Lance could hear the smile in his voice and blushed.

"I…chickened out," he admitted.

"Chickened out?"

"I dunno…I got nervous," he muttered turning more red. Keith laughed on the other side. Lance felt his heart hiccup.

"You got nervous about calling me?" He questioned.

"I didn't know if you wanted me to call yet," Lance replied.

"I do believe I told you whenever you were in New York again, and it looks to me you've been here for a while," Keith said.

"I got in late. I didn't wanna wake you up," Lance responded.

"I dunno. I stay up pretty late. What time did you get in?"

"Like…midnight I think? I'm still in Texas time mentally so it was like ten for me," Lance told him.

"I didn't know you were from Texas," Keith said.

"Oh yeah. I'm from Austin Texas. I think I've said that like a hundred times today in all these interviews."

"I saw that tonight," Keith announced. Lance blushed.

"You did?"

"Mh-hm."

"Did…I mean…um…"

"What?"

"H-how awkward was I honestly? I felt so nervous," Lance said.

"You were a little stiff, but it wasn't too bad."

"Oh thank god."

"I saw your performance too."

"I take it back. I have no god." Keith laughed.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's supposed to mean that was my first time performing live and it probably sucked," Lance told him. Keith hummed.

"It was actually pretty good. I like that song."

"Carñio?"

"Yeah. It sounds better live," Keith confirmed. Lance blushed and swallowed hard.

"Honestly that song is…so embarrassing?"

"How so?"

"Everyone keeps asking about it and it's obviously about…"

"About…?"

"Y-y'know…sex and all that stuff," Lance muttered out of embarrassment.

"'All that stuff'?" Keith repeated. Lance wanted to bury himself in his sheets.

"Yeah…like really good sex," he continued.

"Was it inspired by really good sex?" Keith asked. Lance cringed at himself.

"Yeah…with an old boyfriend."

"He's out of the picture then?"

"Has been for a while…" Keith was silent on the other end. Lance coughed.

"Y'know you still owe me coffee," Keith said suddenly. Lance blinked.

"Right! Yes! Coffee. With you. That's…that's a thing…that I owe you," Lance said awkwardly.

"So which hotel are you staying at?"

"Uh I think…the Arusian hotel," Lance answered.

"Okay. Find the closest coffee shop with Siri or something and send me the address. I'll meet you there tomorrow," Keith instructed.

"W-what time?" Lance stuttered.

"Can you do eight? I have a job at ten."

"Yeah, I can do eight. That's pretty convenient because I have a thing at ten too," Lance replied.

"Maybe it's the same thing," Keith said. Lance grinned.

"Hopefully…"

 

* * *

 

     The closet coffee shop turned out to be a Starbucks just a couple shops down from the Arusian hotel. After Lance sent Keith the address he tried to sleep, but his brain couldn't stop thinking about the fact that he'd get to see Keith again. He'd get to _experience_ that swift punch in the gut that was Keith Kogane _again_. It was hard _not_  to think about, and when he finally did manage to get to sleep he woke up an hour before his alarm could go off. He spent his extra time looking over Keith's Instagram photos again and read all the comments on his own singular photo.

     When his alarm finally did go off he quickly got dressed. Usually he took showers in the morning, but Coran persuaded him in to taking one last night so he didn't need that much time. It was still only seven fifty by the time Lance left the hotel for the coffee shop. Even then he was a couple minutes early. That didn't matter because he instantly caught sight of Keith standing outside checking his phone.

     The model was in a long bright red cozy winter jacket with black jeans and a grey crew neck sweater. His hair looked perfect in the slight breeze and it looked like he was wearing a bit of eyeliner too. He shifted his weight in his black boots and looked up to glance around. Lance was frozen the moment their eyes met and he almost chickened out again and ran away. If it wasn't for Keith's show-stopping smile he would've. He took a deep breath and approached the model.

"Hey," Lance said with a smile as he leaned his forearm against the wall. Keith raised a brow and glanced at his looming stance.

"Uh…hey."

"You mind pointing me in the right direction? I saw you and I instantly got lost in your eyes," Lance said smoothly. He couldn't believe he said that without his voice cracking or wavering, and apparently Keith couldn't believe he said that at all. The model blushed violently and looked at Lance with wide eyes.

"Did you…just use a pick up line on me?" Keith asked. Lance blinked.

"Why? Did it work?" He asked. Keith glared at him.

"N-no," he stuttered. Lance grinned.

"Hey, are you from Tennessee? Because you're the only ten I see," he purred. Keith looked away and shook his head.

"I-I'm from Canada," he replied.

"Canada, eh? That explains why you're so sweet like maple syrup. I wouldn't mind having you on my pancakes for breakfast," Lance continued. Keith looked back at him.

"That doesn't even make sense."

"That's cause you're driving me crazy, baby."

"Okay. Stop it now before I staple your lips shut," Keith threatened. Lance blinked.

"That's very violent of you."

"And very annoying of you," Keith replied and walked past him in to the coffee shops. Lance quickly followed him and they got in line.

"I dunno. You kinda looked like you were enjoying it," Lance said.

"I wasn't," Keith insisted.

"Just admit you're already under the Lance Sanchez McClain love spell."

"How did you manage to actually have a relationship to write a song about?" Keith asked.

"How dare you. My flirting skills are the best, okay?"

"Whatever you say…" Keith muttered and stepped up to the cashier. "Hi, I'd like dark roast black coffee."

"Black coffee? Really?" Lance asked.

"And the name?" The barista asked.

"Keith," he turned to Lance.

"Yup."

"And you, sir?"

"Uh…chai tea please," Lance said.

"Name?"

"Lance."

"Okay."

     Lance pulled out a twenty dollar bill from his wallet and handed it to the barista. She handed him the change and he struggled a little to put all the little coins in his wallet. He heard Keith snickering and looked up at the model waiting for his coffee at the other end of the shop. Lance shook his head and then made his way next to Keith.

"You okay there?" Keith asked.

"I'm fine," Lance replied blushing a little. Keith bit his lip and reached over to fix the hood on Lance's jacket.

"Y'know…you're pretty cute," Keith told him. Lance blinked at him and blushed deeper.

"W-what? N-no I'm…handsome, charming, and maybe beautiful, but I'm not _cute_ ," he said. Keith rolled his eyes and smiled.

"I dunno. You're pretty damn cute," he replied.

"Is this a compliment or are you insulting me somehow?"

"Neither. I'm just telling you incase you didn't know," Keith said simply. Lance stared at the side of his face until he looked back and smiled.

"Baby, if you were words on paper you'd be fine print," Lance said. Keith frowned.

"I take it back."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For anyone who's curious I've got some lyrics for Carñi-oh! Written. 
> 
> Carñi-oh!
> 
> (First verse)
> 
> I want you right here  
> I want you right now  
> I don't care if you shout  
> I don't care if they hear
> 
> Oh-ho
> 
> (Pre-chorus)
> 
> Cause your body's rocking  
> You're climbing on top of me  
> We're never stoping  
> Baby I'll make you scream
> 
> Rocking your hips  
> Back and forth back and forth
> 
> Tasting your lips  
> On my tongue on my tongue
> 
> I want you right now  
> Right now right now
> 
> Baby you make me scream
> 
> Chorus (x2)
> 
> Carñi-oh! Mm-hm  
> Carñi-oh-ho  
> Carñi-oo-ho-oo-ho-oo (x2)
> 
> If you're interested in hearing the melody contact me on Twitter (@n0t_an_artist) and I'll send you a shitty recording of me attempting to sing it…fair warning my voice sucks


	4. Idiot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance has a big mouth

     When they finally got their coffee Keith decided to sit outside. Lance followed since he didn't really have a preference and his only discomfort was how cold it was compared to Texas. Still it wasn't like he was freezing since he was in a nice warm jacket, and he liked the way Keith's bright red one looked with his skin.

"So, from the short amount of time I've actually spent in person with you, I've learned that you have terrible pick up lines, you're a little clumsy and…" Keith trailed off as Lance chewed on his straw. He smiled. "…and you're no where as cool as the media portrays you."

"What? The media tries to make me look cool?" Lance asked. Keith nodded. "Well I dunno…I can make a pretty good burrito."

"I'm swooning."

"Don't worry. I'll catch you," Lance assured him. Keith shook his head and tried not to smile wider.

"You're terrible."

"I'm not _that_ lame, am I? I'd like to leave with my ego at least a little intact," Lance said. Keith picked up his coffee and drank.

"You're as cool as a cup of coffee," he said holding it up before setting it back down. Lance grinned.

"So I'm hot?" He asked. Keith blushed.

"I…didn't think that one through," he admitted. Lance laughed.

"There's also such thing as iced coffee," he pointed out.

"But I wasn't talking about iced coffee."

"Still, regardless, coffee can be cool."

"You're twisting my words."

"Well your words are pretty fun to twist, so can you blame me?" Lance grinned. Keith opened his mouth to say something but closed it when he couldn't think of something in response. Instead he merely sipped his coffee again and blushed.

"You're more awkward on the phone," Keith decided.

"You're more put together on the phone," Lance replied. Keith smiled at him and then pulled out said phone.

"Do you mind if I take a picture? I can already hear my manager nagging me to post something about this," Keith said.

"Sure," Lance allowed. Keith opened his phone and pointed the camera at Lance.

"Say 'I suck at pick up lines'," he instructed. Lance laughed and Keith snapped the picture at the perfect time. "Wonderful."

"I don't completely suck, do I?"

"I already told you that you're cute, but then you lost that privilege," Keith said and wrote a quick caption before sending off the photo to Instagram.

"But you still said I was cute."

"Only for you to deny it."

"Well I wouldn't use the word cute to describe myself."

"You're right. Dork is a better word." Lance smiled and shook his head.

"Rude."

"If you're willing, there's definitely a way to earn that privilege back," Keith said leaning his elbow on the table. Lance sipped his drink.

"My 'cute' privilege?" He questioned. Keith shrugged.

"More like…the privilege of being complimented by a model."

"And how long have you been a model exactly?" Lance asked. Keith shook his head.

"Nope. Not answering that," he replied and leaned back to drink his coffee.

"Why not?"

"It's not important."

"Well now I'm curious."

"Curiosity killed the cat," Keith hummed as Lance felt and heard his phone go off. He checked the contact name and cursed at Coran's name across the screen.

"It's my manager," he said. Keith nodded in understanding and closed his eyes as he took another drink. Lance accepted the call.

"Hey-"

"Where are you? You have a photoshoot at ten! It's almost nine!" Coran shouted.

"I'm just down the street at Starbucks," Lance told him.

"What? Why?"

"I'm having coffee with someone," Lance said. Keith peeked up at him over the cup and set it down.

"Who?"

"Keith."

"Kogane?"

"Yeah. The model."

"She's doing the photoshoot with you," Coran told him. Lance blinked. A part of him was surprised, but another part of him wasn't.

"O…kay?"

"You should come back to the hotel. You'll see Keith later," Coran assured him. Lance frowned.

"That's-"

"I'm being serious, Lance. There's no time for fooling around here," Coran said sternly. The musician sighed.

"Okay. I'm on my way," Lance said.

"Good. I'll see you soon," Coran said before hanging up. Lance put his phone away.

"I have to go back," he announced.

"That sucks."

"Yeah. He said I don't have time for 'fooling around'," Lance replied using his fingers for quotation marks. Keith giggled.

"Are you kidding me? That sounds like my manager," he grinned.

"She's the one with the white hair, right?" Keith nodded. "She looks…interesting." Keith frowned, and Lance noticed. 

"What?"

"She's not available," Keith spat. Lance blinked.

"What?" He asked. Keith stood up.

"I get that you're bi and all and you like cis people, but Allura wouldn't give you the time of day," he said bitterly.

"Whoa, Keith, calm down-"

"I'll see you at ten. Don't talk to me the entire time or I'll cut your tongue out."

 

* * *

 

     Once again Lance was in the awkward position of modeling with an unbelievably attractive person who hated his guts. What was impressive was how quickly he managed to piss Keith off again, and even more impressive was that Keith seemed to hate him tenfold. This time they were on a fancy couch with Keith in black shorts and a black bralette. Lance actually had a shirt this time and black ripped skinny jeans, but he could care less about the style. He was more concerned with fixing his fuck up with Keith…again.

     Whenever he tried to talk the model wouldn't let him. Each time he opened his mouth it was closed with either a finger or a death glare and each time only made Keith angrier. They started at the opposite ends of the couch, but eventually the photographer wanted Keith in Lance's lap whilst being manhandled by the musician. As smooth and as creamy his thighs were, Lance would appreciate touching them when Keith wasn't threatening to cut out his tongue.

     Eventually Lance had to talk. The photographer didn't seem to want them apart anymore so he was stuck with Keith in his lap. His arm was draped over his shoulder and Keith looked in to the camera. His jewelry dangled and clicked as he shifted and Lance kinda liked the way Keith looked decorated in gold and beads. He cleared his throat as Keith leaned closer to the photographers instructions, and shivered when he felt thin fingers in his hair. He wetted his lips and glanced at the side of Keith's face.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

"I thought I told you not to talk to me."

"Well I don't always do what I'm told," Lance muttered. Keith risked a glare at him before returning to his model facade.

"Your apology means nothing if you don't know what you did," Keith said and shifted his position again. Lance moved his hand up to the small of Keith's back.

"It would help if you told me what I did wrong."

"Shut up. Don't play innocent," Keith snapped.

"I'm not-" Lance was interrupted as the hand in his hair suddenly made its way to his lips. Keith shushed him with his arm almost squeezing his nape and the back of his finger to his mouth. The photographer snapped a couple photos and complimented the pose before Keith pulled his hand back.

"It's obvious, okay? But you're not getting in to Allura's pants," Keith said. Lance frowned.

"I'm not trying to get into her pants," Lance replied. Keith rolled his eyes and stood up on his knees as instructed. The musician found himself talking to the model's bare stomach, and being told to hold Keith's hips.

"Sure you're not," Keith mumbled running his hands through Lance's hair again. The musician blushed at the position and looked up at Keith.

"I'm not," he insisted. Keith finally met his gaze and raised a brow.

"Uh-huh, totally."

"Seriously! I'm not trying to get in to her pants. I'm trying to get in to your-" Lance quickly cut himself off by slapping his hand over his mouth. 

     He looked up at Keith with wide eyes and the model was bright red. Keith hesitated for a moment before stepping off the couch and walking away from the set. The photographer called for Keith to come back as Lance remained on the couch with his face in his palms. He sighed and took away his hands to find Coran approaching him. The red head crouched down next to the couch and patted Lance's shoulder.

"That's why you don't fool around with models," Coran told him. Lance looked at Keith longingly.

"I'm an idiot."

 

* * *

 

"I pissed him off again," Lance sighed.

"Who?" Hunk asked on the other end of the phone call. It sounded like he was eating a burrito.

"Keith," Lance answered. Hunk spat out his burrito.

"Again? Are you serious? What did you do this time?"

"I guess he thought I was in to his manager or something. He must be like protective about her or something…"

"His manager?"

"Yeah. We were having coffee together and Coran totally freaked on me-"

"Wait, you were having coffee with _Keith?_ "

"Yeah. I called him last night. Anyways Coran was freaking out and Keith said his manager was a little crazy about schedules too. I said she was interesting, but for some reason that like majorly pissed him off. He threatened to cut off my tongue if I talked to him again!"

"Dude, no way! You actually received a threat from Keith Kogan? There's only life a few people they view worthy to threaten!"

"Well he threatened me a couple times…"

"Whoa, really?"

"Yeah. He's pretty hostile."

"He's crazy, dude. That's why he's famous. I also heard he has a knife collecti-" Hunk's voice was interrupted by a beep. Lance pulled back his phone to see that someone else was trying to call him. He was about to dismiss it when he recognized the number from last night and his eyes widened.

"Uh, I'm gonna have to call you back," Lance announced.

"Uh, okay. What's going on?" Hunk asked.

"I-I'll explain in like a few minutes. Hold on," Lance said and then clicked on the accept button.

"…hello?" He spoke cautiously. There was a familiar disgruntled sigh on the other line and Lance knew for sure who it was. "Keith."

"I can't believe I'm doing this," was muttered barely loud enough for Lance to hear.

"You okay?" Lance asked.

"Not really, but I guess I'll live," Keith replied bitterly.

"Okay…uh, what's up?"

"I just wanna clear one thing up right now: I'm still mad at you and this wasn't my idea," Keith informed him. Lance blinked at his ceiling.

"Uh…okay? I assumed you weren't happy considering you still sound pretty pissed off," Lance observed.

"Don't assume things about me," Keith snapped.

"Okay okay…sorry," Lance mumbled.

"Anyways…I got invited to this party and my manager said I should take you with me," Keith said. Lance frowned.

"Why?" He asked. Keith was silent for a moment.

"She said it would bring more publicity or whatever. I dunno. She told me that people seem to like us together," Keith explained.

"Well if you don't actually want me to go then I don't see the point of upsetting you more just for the camera," Lance said. Keith paused again.

"So…you're saying no?" Keith asked incredulously.

"I mean I don't like making you upset, and this sounds like something you don't want me to do, so yeah. I'll say no," Lance decided. Once again there was silence.

"You're saying no…"

"Uh-huh."

"To an invitation from a _model_ …"

"Yup."

"To a party that will have dozens of celebrities and alcohol…"

"Yes."

"Just because you don't want to hurt my feelings anymore?"

"Yeah. You really hit the nail on the head," Lance confirmed. More silence.

"You really are a fucking idiot," Keith said. Lance sighed.

"What?" He asked defensively.

"You're going to this party. Allura isn't exactly giving me a choice."

"Tell her you tried and I just wouldn't come," Lance said simply.

"Then she'll call Coran and then he'd make you go."

"Well I'm a stubborn ass, so he can't make me go or he's fired," Lance stated.

"Wait, you'd _fire_  your manager just to avoid going to this stupid party?" Keith asked.

"No, I'd fire my manager if it meant I wouldn't be making you uncomfortable in an already forced situation," Lance said. 

     Keith was quiet again on the other line. The musician couldn't quite understand why Keith was fighting him on this, but he was sticking to his answer. Being around Keith wasn't worth it if Keith was uncomfortable. That's not what Lance wanted to do.

"Why are you doing this?"

"I've already told you. I don't-"

"No, like…why are you being nice to me?"

"Because I like you," Lance blurted. Again no noise came from the other line. "Keith?"

"You're coming to the party with me. Not because Allura is making me, but because I told you to. Got it?"

"Wait, what?"

"You heard me. There will be a car at your hotel at nine tomorrow night. Wear something nice," Keith said before hanging up. Lance stared up at his ceiling for a while longer before closing his gaping jaw and calling Hunk again.

"Hey buddy. What was that about?" Hunk asked.

"I think I've just been manhandled…is that possible over the phone?"

"Uh…technically speaking no. What happened?"

"I'd say Keith asked me out on a date, but it was more like he was telling me we have a date," Lance said. It sounded like Hunk was spitting something out of his mouth on the other end.

"Wait, _you have a date with Keith?_ "

"I guess so. There's gonna be a car at my hotel tomorrow night…so…yeah?"

"Dude…holy shit…you're dating a model," Hunk told him. Lance blushed and sat up in surprise.

"W-what? No I'm not! It's just one date! He said it was for publicity!" Lance shouted.

"Lance. You had coffee with him and now you're going to a party with him. If this keeps going on I think it's safe to say you're dating a model."

"I'm not dating Keith, okay? I'm pretty sure he doesn't like me that way," Lance insisted.

"But what if he _did_ like you that way? Would you date him?" Hunk asked. Lance bit his lip in thought for a moment before sighing.

"Probably…"

"Dude, if you like Keith you gotta tell him-"

"I did," Lance confessed in a groan.

"Wait, you seriously told him you like him?"

"Yeah…I said no at first because it sounded like he didn't want me to actually go, so he asked why I was being so nice and it kinda just jumped out," Lance explained.

"And then what happened?"

"Hunk-"

"Lance! What are you doing?" Coran nearly shouted as he bursted in to the room. Lance sat up on his bed to look at his manager.

"Uh…I'm talking to my best friend Hunk," he replied.

"Hang up that phone now," he ordered. Lance sighed.

"I'll talk to you later," he said.

"Duty calls?"

"Yup."

"Alright. Talk to you later."

"Bye." Lance hung up the phone and returned his attention to Coran. "What?"

"I just got off the phone with Keith's manager, and she told me you're going with him to the Balmera night club opening party tomorrow night."

"Yup."

"Why didn't you tell me this?"

"Coran, it literally just happened. Keith called me like five minutes ago," Lance told him.

"And that's five minutes we could've used getting you prepared for tomorrow night!" Coran snapped.

"What?"

"You heard me. What are you planning on wearing?"

"I dunno. Clothes?"

"Wrong answer! We're going shopping. Now," the ginger announced.

"Coran-"

"Nope! No other option. Get your shoes on and your wallet and we're going shopping!"

 

* * *

 

     Lance stood in front of the mirror and couldn't help but smile at his reflection. Through out his life he had gotten used to and comfortable in casual clothes. His mother was a single mom so they were usually right on money, but _this?_. Nice clothes, money he didn't know was in his debit card, and being able to pay for his own things. He could get used to that.

     The musician smoothed his fingers over the fresh fabric of his dark blue blazer. It matched his pants, and his warm skin popped nicely against the cool tones of the fabric. He had a white button up shirt on with the first couple buttons undone and some shiny black shoes. When he sent a photo of his reflection to Hunk he said it looked nice, and when he sent it to his mother she went crazy over how handsome he looked. He grinned at his phone as he thought of all the gifts he would now be able to buy for his mother, and then tucked the device in his pocket.

"Lance? Are you ready? The car is outside right now!" Coran called from the living room.

"Yeah, I'll be right out!" Lance called back. He stuffed his wallet in his other pocket and stepped out of the room. Coran smiled at him.

"Wonderful. You look ready for a photograph," he said. Lance grinned.

"Thank you, Coran. I think I look pretty damn good myself," he replied.

"Well don't fall in love with your reflection. You gotta get in that car downstairs. C'mon. Let's go!"

     Lance was ushered out of the hotel and to the car outside by Coran. It was sleek and black, but he didn't have time to admire it when he was shoved in to the seat and locked in. He blinked at his new surroundings and almost had a heart attack when he saw Keith sitting next to him. The model looked him up and down with crossed arms then frowned. Lance instantly noticed why.

"We match," he grinned.

     Yes, the musician and the model "matched". They matched in the sense that Keith's blazer and shorts matched the hue of Lance's pants, but Keith wasn't exactly wearing a shirt and Lance was pretty sure those shorts didn't have pockets. Keith sighed and shook his head.

"I knew Allura was up to something," he grumbled. Lance laughed a little.

"Hey, in my opinion I think you wore it better," he said. Keith glared at him.

"Can you stop being charming for a minute, please? I'm still upset with you," he replied unfolding his arms.

"Really? Because you're the one who told me to…" 

     Lance then noticed something rather unusual about Keith's appearance. He's seen the model in more feminine clothes before, but he couldn't quite remember his breasts being so…pronounced. Plus he wasn't exactly wearing a shirt under his blazer, so Lance had an eyeful of a soft cupped white bra with matte lace. It looked pretty and his pale skin looked gorgeous. In fact Lance could pick out a small mole close to the center of his sternum. Still it seemed a little…off.

"Are you wearing a push-up bra?" Lance blurted still staring intently at Keith's chest. The model blushed with wide eyes. His glare hardened and he returned his arms over his chest.

"N-no! What gave you that idea! Stop staring at my boobs, you creep!" He spat. Lance looked up with even wider eyes as he realized his mistake.

"Oh my god! I am so sorry! I-I didn't mean to-"

"Don't look at me at all! Geez!" Keith snapped. Lance quickly turned his head to his lap awkwardly and covered his eyes.

"I'm so sorry…" he mumbled. Keith glared at him a little longer before adjusting his breasts in his bra. He cleared his throat.

"If you look at me again tonight I'll rip your eyes out," Keith grumbled. Lance nodded. "You can still speak, idiot."

"I may be an idiot, but you're the one who told me to be here," Lance reminded him. Keith sighed.

"That makes me the idiot."


	5. Drunk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ha

     They were both idiots sitting in silence as the car drove them to the club. Lance shifted uncomfortably every now and again, but didn't dare test Keith's threat. His eyes remained glued to the floor of the car and his lap as he listened to the silence. It was rather awkward and very embarrassing on the musicians behalf. He didn't think that maybe, just maybe, he _shouldn't_  ask Keith about his undergarments, and instead just let his curiosity run wild. That was three times he had pissed Keith off and if he didn't get on the model's good side again he was certain he'd be in deep shit.

     When they finally arrived at the Balmera night club there was already dozens of paparazzi and photographers waiting around the entrance. Lance was instantly greeted with a flash when he opened his door, and couldn't help but smile at how crazy it all was to him. The cameras seemed to love his grin because once he was out of the car there were dozens of flashes surrounding. He couldn't even see in front of him and felt himself being tugged by the wrist towards the club.

"God, don't _ogle_ at them. It's just the paparazzi," Keith grumbled and lead Lance inside.

"I've never been photographed like that! Did you see it? That's crazy," Lance grinned keeping his eyes on the door. He was determined not to look at Keith incase he was still willing to rip Lance's eyes out.

"We'll get used to it. You've probably already been photographed outside your hotel," Keith said as they entered the atmosphere of loud music and warm bodies.

     The musician stared with awe. His jaw dropped at the flashing multi-colored lights and the glassy look to the bar. Unfortunately the music was a little too loud that Lance didn't hear Keith until the model was almost shouting in his ear to stop drooling like a five year old. He was once again tugged by the wrist and this time he was lead to the bar. Thankfully it was a little quieter, but Lance was distracted by the dance floor. It looked like fractured iridescent glass in the lights, and Lance instantly wanted to dance on it.

"Here," Keith said handing Lance a beer. The musician looked at the bottle and frowned. Technically he was allowed to drink, but he didn't know how he felt about getting drunk somewhere so unfamiliar. He wasn't a beer fan anyways, and when he saw the shot of vodka Keith took he shook his head.

"What is this, a high school sleepover?" Lance asked staring at the shot glass. Keith gestured for another one and sighed.

"No. It's me getting drunk quick," Keith replied. Lance shook his head and took the second shot before Keith could touch it.

"No no," he said and looked at the bartender. "Get him something fruity. A nice cocktail with a kick," Lance said pulling out his wallet. Keith blushed and the bartender gave Lance a funny look.

"He?" The bartender asked. Lance looked up as he pulled out a fifty. For some reason that was the smallest bill he had.

"Uh…yeah?" Lance replied handing the man the bill. The bartender saw the number on the corners and instantly starting whipping up a cherry red cocktail. Apparently it didn't matter what pronouns Lance referred Keith to when he was given enough cash.

"I'm not drinking a fruity cocktail," Keith announced. Lance rolled his eyes and handed the shot of vodka to a random person and handed his unopened beer back to the bartender.

"Oh don't tell me your masculinity is so fragile you won't drink the best kinds of drinks," Lance scoffed. Keith glared at the musician who was yet to look at him ever since he was yelled at.

"I'm literally wearing a bra and short-shorts right now," he reminded Lance through clenched teeth.

"So I think you can actually enjoy getting drunk for once," Lance replied as the bartender set the drink in front of the model. Keith eyed the red liquid and then looked at Lance who was focused on the napkin he was fiddling with.

"Why aren't you drinking?" Keith asked picking up the glass.

"Like I'm gonna drink here. I just turned twenty one like weeks ago. I don't wanna get drunk in an unfamiliar place," Lance said. The model raised a brow and sighed before taking a sip. It was sweet. A little too sweet. It made his lips pucker.

"Do you like it?" Lance asked. He caught the model lifting the glass in his peripherals, but couldn't quite catch the twisted expression of discomfort.

"It's too sweet…and strong."

"Well it's so sweet because it's so strong," Lance told him. Keith shook his head to shake out the pucker and took another sip.

"Ugh, how am I supposed to drink this whole thing?" Keith growled and continued regardless. Lance chuckled and looked around the club.

     It was packed. The entire club was huge, but it looked like there was barely enough room to fit everyone in. There must've been a guest list or something. Lance must've missed it when he was distracted by the flashing cameras. That or the loud music with pulsing beats, or possibly all the lights dancing around. Now that he thought about it everything was distracting him, but there was one thing that caught his eye.

     A small familiar person was near the DJ examining some equipment. It looked like he was just wrapping up and looked up at the lights. Once Lance caught sight of those circular glasses he grinned.

"C'mon," Lance said and got up from his bar stool. Keith hummed and noticed Lance walking away. The model sighed and begrudgingly followed him over to the small boy wondering behind the speaker. Lance tapped his shoulder and Pidge blinked up at him with wide eyes.

"Pidge! I knew I recognized those glasses!" Lance grinned and grabbed his hand for a handshake. Pidge was jolted a little and quickly adjusted his glasses when Lance let go.

"Huh? Oh, h-hey Lance," he greeted.

"What's up? Are you working the sound here?" Lance asked. Pidge nodded.

"Yup. I'm also working on the lights."

"Really? They look awesome," Lance grinned. Keith cleared his throat before the musician could go on. "Oh, Keith, this is Pidge. He was working on my sound that time I performed live," Lance said still keeping his eyes off the model. "Pidge this is-"

"Keith Kogan. Yes, I've heard a lot about you," Pidge said reaching out his hand. Keith accepted the handshake and sipped his drink again.

"Nice to meet you," the model said.

"It's nice to meet you too. Unfortunately I've got another job on the other side of town, so I have to be going, but it was nice talking with you again, Lance," Pidge said as he packed up his gear.

"Yeah, totally. We should talk more," Lance nodded. The technician blushed and smiled back at the tall musician.

"Yeah, that would be cool," he agreed. They bid their farewells as Pidge made his way out of the club. Lance waved goodbye until he was out of sight and Keith gave him an unimpressed look.

"Isn't he neat? I think he'd get along with Hunk back home," Lance said.

"Hunk?"

"My best friend. He helped with the drums and the editing for our album," Lance told Keith.

"Our?"

"Yeah. I see it as mine and Hunk's album, but he doesn't exactly like the spotlight. He's pretty humble like that."

"He sounds interesting."

"Totally. Hey, you wanna dance?" Lance asked. Keith instantly shook his head.

"I don't dance," he replied.

"Aw c'mon. Don't be like that. Dancing is fun."

"No thanks. I don't like being close to people," Keith insisted. Lance shook his head.

"You're no fun," he said pulling out his wallet. He handed Keith a couple more bills and stuffed his wallet back in his pocket. "I'm gonna go out there, but you get something that isn't hard liquor for once," he told the model before walking out in to the crowd.

     Keith sighed and looked down at the bills in his hand. One was a fifty and the other was a hundred and he shook his head at the musicians disregard for cash. He went back to the bar and glanced back at the now dancing musician. It was only a glance before he turned back to the bar tender and ordered another shot of vodka. He knocked it back and instantly ordered a third. His alcohol tolerance was rather high for some reason, but he was only now feeling it in his finger tips. The red drink Lance ordered him still sat in front of him and he snuck another glance at the tall tanned boy.

     Lance could dance. Keith shouldn't have been surprised, yet he was slightly gaping at how well Lance moved his body on the iridescent dance floor. The lights hit his dark skin beautifully and a glance turned out to be longer than Keith had intended. His line of sight was interrupted by a tall and wide stature. He looked up and smiled at the familiar face.

"I didn't expect to see you here, Shiro," Keith said. His personal trainer laughed and took a seat next to him.

"Well, Allura said I might find you here and wanted me to make sure you didn't drink too much," he said. Keith rolled his eyes and mindlessly sipped the red drink.

"That's new. Didn't expect you to order that."

"Wasn't me. My _date_ ordered it for me," Keith muttered. Shiro raised a brow.

"Who is it this time?" He asked.

"Y'know that skinny hispanic kid blowing up on the radio?"

"Lance Sanchez McClain?" Shiro questioned. Keith nodded and turned to point him out. Shiro followed his finger and grinned when he spotted the young man dancing and laughing with random people.

"Wow. He's a good dancer," he commented. Keith shrugged and turned back to his drink.

"He's an idiot," he grumbled.

"Is that the guy who spilled your coffee all over you and gave you his shirt to apologize for it?" Shiro asked. Keith nodded. "Well at least he's a nice idiot."

"He hasn't looked at me all night," Keith announced. He didn't quite know why it bothered him. He _did_  tell Lance to stop looking at him, but he didn't think he'd take it so seriously.

"Really? That's odd."

"I told him not too, but it kinda feels like he's mocking my choice of words."

"Or he's respecting your wishes," Shiro said. Keith hummed and drank some more. That was when Lance came back giggling a little and smiling at Shiro.

"Hey! You're Shiro Takashi, right? I have a friend back in Texas who's like obsessed with you," he greeted holding out his hand. Shiro accepted the hand shake and smiled.

"Yeah, and you're Lance Sanchez McClain. Keith has told me so much about you," Shiro replied. Keith almost spat out his drink and blushed furiously. Lance smiled, but still didn't dare to look at the model.

"Really? I didn't know I was a popular topic."

"Not really," Keith grumbled. Shiro lifted a brow at Keith and then returned his attention to Lance.

"I was only here to make sure Keith didn't drink half the bar, but now that I see you're here I think I'll leave him in your hands," Shiro said patting Lance's shoulder. The trainer stood up and leaned in to his ear. "Also, a word of advice…don't neglect Keith. He's kind of an attention whore," he murmured. Lance nodded and smiled as Shiro walked away. He took Shiro's old spot next to Keith and leaned his elbows on the bar.

"Are you sure you don't wanna dance? It's really fun," Lance coaxed. Keith rolled his eyes.

"Why would I want to dance with someone who won't look at me?" He grumbled bitterly in to his glass. Lance furrowed his brows at the counter.

"Well…you did threaten to rip my eyes out so…"

"Do you really think I'm capable of that?" Keith scoffed.

"Maybe…but I also don't want you to feel uncomfortable," Lance added. Keith sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Oh my god you're so dumb. Just fucking look at me," he snapped softly.

     Blue eyes quickly found navy, and Keith was surprised to find lance's gaze so fast. At first he was cautious, but now he shamelessly stared at Keith in awe. His eyes jumped all over his face, and the longer Lance stared at him the deeper Keith blushed. He was taken off guard for a few moments before his glare returned and he returned to his drink.

"Okay…that's good enough," Keith muttered.

"You're gorgeous," Lance said. The model turned bright red and defensively drew his shoulders up.

"S-shut up…" he stuttered. Lance grinned.

"C'mon. Let's dance," he tried again. Keith shook his head, but Lance disregarded that quickly. He tugged Keith by his wrist on to the dance floor, and the model protested until he found himself in the middle of the club.

     Bodies surrounded them, but the only body that mattered was Lance's. No matter how hard Keith tried to mind the others he was distracted by Lance and how nice he smelled. Pale fingers gripped Lance's arms and Keith realized he was clinging on to the musician. Lance laughed and grabbed Keith's hands. His body felt like jelly over the sparkling dance floor, and Lance's fingers felt so strong intertwined with his. The music was generic, but the alcohol must've been kicking in because Keith instantly moved with Lance. A less than sober smile spread over the model's face as Lance lead the dance. It was a good thing he knew how to dance or else Keith would've been clueless.

     There was something attractive about Lance knowing how to dance. Not only knowing, but being _good_ at dancing. The way he moved his feet and his hips made Keith bite his lip and appreciate how he moved with the beat. Lance then spun him around and Keith almost lost his balance. He giggled as he landed in Lance's arms and felt a shiver when he heard the vibrations of the others vocal chords right next to his ear.

"I never thought I'd meet a clumsy model," he teased and guided Keith back to his feet.

"I'm drunk!" Keith replied and wrapped his arms around Lance's neck.

"I can tell," Lance said raising a brow in minor concern.

     Keith wasn't just drunk off of the alcohol. He was also drunk off of lights, he was drunk off of the party, but most of all he was drunk off of Lance. A grin spread across his red face and he pressed his body closer to the musician. Lance blushed with wide eyes as Keith closed his and leaned his head back. His hips swayed at their own pace and he continued to hold on to Lance's neck. The tan musician kept his hands on Keith's waist, but they were soon guided to his hips. Although they weren't exactly wide it was still nice to hold, and Lance wasn't sure just how drunk Keith was…

"Hey, are you okay?" Lance asked. It was more like he shouted it from how loud the music was. Keith giggled and brought his head back up so his forehead rested in Lance's neck.

"I had like four shots," he hiccuped.

" _And_ the drink I ordered for you?" Lance asked. Keith nodded.

"Yeah…is that a lot?"

"Dude, that drink is probably like the equivalence of five shots," he said. Keith burped.

"…so I had nine?"

"Yes! Dude, you gotta go home. You might get alcohol poisoning," Lance said. He started to guide Keith out of the mass of dancing people.

"No…I wanna keep dancing with you," Keith whined. Lance kept Keith close and managed to get to the front door.

"Seriously, I don't want you passing out on me. You're…surprisingly heavy," Lance groaned as he struggled to keep Keith up.

"Muscle weight," the model murmured simply. The musician shook his head and stepped outside. The paparazzi were still there, but Lance merely ignored them and searched for the car.

"Dammit. Where's the car? Do we call someone?" Lance asked.

"Here's m'phone," Keith mumbled handing Lance the device. Lance took it and Keith sloppily opened it with his thumbprint. Then Lance opened the call app and pressed the contact that read "manager mom". It rang for a moment before Allura picked up.

"Keith? Is something wrong? It's not even midnight," she spoke.

"Hi, Keith's manager, Allura. It's Lance and I currently have a very intoxicated Keith on me and he needs to go home ASAP," Lance said hastily as Keith nuzzled against his neck.

"Y'smell good," the model muttered.

"What? How did he get so drunk? I sent Shiro over there to _prevent_  that!" Allura replied.

"Yeah, I ordered one of those fruity drinks that has a lot of alcohol in them for him because he was just taking straight vodka. He must've forgotten about how strong it was because he had like four shots after it," Lance reported.

"Oh my goodness! The car is on its way now," Allura told him. Keith leaned more of his weight on the skinny musician. Lance struggled with Keith's deadweight and had to lean on the wall next to the front entrance. He groaned as he readjusted his grip around Keith's waist.

"Hurry please…he's…really heavy," Lance panted.

"It should be there any minute now. Oh thank you for calling me. He doesn't get super drunk often, but when he does I worry," Allura said.

"No problem," Lance croaked as more of Keith leaned on him. He quickly caught sight of the same sleek black car that brought them there and patted Keith's hip. "It's here. He'll be home soon," Lance said.

"Okay, thank you again!"

"No problem. Bye!"

"Bye."

     Lance hung up the phone and used both his hands to half carry half guide Keith to the car. The model stumbled a little in his chunky boots, but once he was in the car he laid over like a limp noodle. Lance sighed and pushed him over a little so he could climb in as well and made sure Keith was buckled.

"Can you take us back to K-"

"Keith's apartment. Got it. Allura called me not too long ago," the driver assured Lance. The musician nodded.

"Thank you," he sighed.

     Just as he started to relax Lance felt Keith lean over his thighs. He looked up at Lance with droopy navy eyes and it was kind of adorable. Keith then rested his chin on Lance's thigh and sighed. His head dropped over and Lance felt his warm cheek through the fabric of his new pants.

"You're so sweet," Keith murmured. Lance blinked in surprise.

"I…what?" The model looked up at him again.

"Yer an idiot bu…you don mean to be…you're mosly jus stupid an cute…" Keith slurred.

"Thank you. I think," Lance said. Keith shook his head.

"I'm kinda a dick to you…but I like you too," Keith sighed. Lance's heart fluttered and he smiled down at Keith.

"Yeah?" He asked. The model nodded and smiled back.

"Yeah," he hummed.

In that moment Lance felt happy. Despite Keith possibly and accidentally poisoning himself with alcohol and his slurred speech. And the fact that he probably wouldn't remember this…and then deny it no matter how many times Lance insisted it happened. All that matter was that it _was_  happening, and nothing could ruin that moment for Lance.

 

     That was until Keith leaned over the seat and puked all over Lance's shiny new shoes.

 

 

 

Yeah, that kinda put a damper on things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot about this


	6. Serious

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance and Keith talk a little after their wild night out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lmao remember when I said I’d never update this fic again??

     Keith didn’t remember much at all. He remembered lights, the smell of his fruity drink, and how good Lance looked. When he woke up his head was pounding. It was the kind of pain that instantly made it impossible to get back to sleep, so instead he opened his eyes and looked out his window. He had one of those fancy apartments that had one wall that was entirely window. The city was as lively as ever, and the sun streamed directly in his eyes. Keith raised his hand to block out the brightness and pushed himself up. He had no recollection of putting on the clothes he was currently wearing.

     The last memory he had of fabric was too tight shorts and the most uncomfortable underwire push up bra he had ever worn. It didn’t take him long to find his previous outfit neatly folded at the foot of his bed, and then the Advil sitting on his nightstand. Next to the medicine was a glass of water. He took the pills and drained the glass instantly.

     Hunger eventually inspired Keith to get out of bed. He shuffled into his kitchen in his oversized tee shirt and sweats, and then tried to find something to eat. Before he could get to his fridge he noticed a blanket covered mass on his couch and yelped. The mass jumped and suddenly Lance Sanchez McClain was on Keith’s living room floor. He glared at the musician in horror and watched him blink back alert and surprised. Lance then relaxed when he saw Keith wasn’t in any immediate danger. He sighed and sat up on the floor.

“Morning,” he said. Keith looked him up and down. He was only in his boxers and the dress shirt he wore last night. Except now it was all unbuttoned and his chest was exposed. Keith tried to ignore how good Lance looked so disheveled and undressed.

“What are you doing here?” He demanded to know. Lance yawned.

“Uh…just making sure you’re okay. Allura suggested I visited you in the morning, but it was so late when we finally got you in bed that I decided to stay the night,” he explained.

“Without my permission?” Keith hissed. Lance frowned.

“Sorry. Allura said it was fine, and I really just wanted to make sure you’re alright,” he said. Keith crossed his arms.

“Uh huh. I’m sure Allura said you should change my clothes for me too and violate my privacy,” he accused.

“What? No, Allura did that by herself…I don’t think you know just how drunk you got last night,” Lance responded.

“It definitely feels like nine shots,” he grumbled.

“Yeah…it was like nine shots exactly,” Lance nodded.

“That’s usually when I black out,” Keith sighed. He leaned against his counter as Lance got up and approached him.

“Would you like some uh…breakfast or something?” He asked. Keith looked at him with a raised brow.

“Are you offering to go fetch me food, or are you saying you can actually cook?” He asked. Lance shrugged.

“I’m no professional, but I can make a really mean breakfast burrito,” he smirked. Keith’s eyes flickered down to his lips, biting his own as he did, and he cursed himself.

“That doesn’t sound too bad…” he murmured. Lance’s smirk turned into a grin.

“I’ll get right on it.”

     Keith watched Lance work in his kitchen while he sat on the counter snacking on a pop tart. He had a couple packages hidden around his apartment because Allura would always take them away. Lance alternated between whistling and singing while he cooked, and Keith found it hard to remember just how nice his voice sounded until he was met with the sweet sound. Another reason he was strangely attracted to this Texas raised idiot. Lance sometimes sang to Keith directly, and laughed a little when Keith looked away blushing. Once he was done with Keith’s burrito, he wrapped it up tightly and handed it to him on a plate.

“One breakfast burrito for one very hung over yet still very attractive model,” Lance announced as Keith took the plate. He hated that that made him smile, and he shook his head at Lance.

“You cook, you sing, and you’re annoyingly charming. How are you single again?” Keith teased and then took a bite. Lance smirked and turned to make breakfast for himself.

“Well I think I’ve made it more than obvious that you’re welcomed to change that,” he said casually. Keith chewed slowly and peaked up at Lance from under his fringe. Lance didn’t look back and instead cracked two more eggs on to the pan. Keith swallowed and set his plate down.

“That’s true,” he nodded. Lance looked back for a second before returning his focus to his cooking.

“I know that you’ve been less than happy with me lately, but I just can’t shake the feeling that you kinda have a thing for me,” Lance said. Keith raised a brow and slid off his counter.

“A thing?”

“Yup.”

“What is this ‘thing’ that I have for you exactly?” Keith questioned crossing his arms. Lance shrugged as he kept his eggs fried and flipped them.

“I dunno…maybe it’s a ‘I like you quite a bit, but your kind of a dork so I don’t wanna admit it’ kinda thing,” Lance said. Keith scoffed and shook his head.

“So I get drunk and say stupid things, and suddenly you know everything about me?” Keith asked. Lance gave him a funny look and then shoved the eggs on a plate for himself. He seasoned it and faced Keith.

“Then again it might be a ‘I just wanna find a ridiculous reason to be upset with you, but I really want you to keep trying’ type of thing,” he continued. Keith blushed and looked away. That was almost accurate.

“Not exactly, but it’s definitely cute when you try,” he murmured. Lance smiled and started to eat his eggs.

“I mean, you told me that you like me last night,” he said. Keith’s eyes snapped to Lance.

“I _what?“_

“Yeah, and then you threw up on my shoes which Allura said she’d pay for, but like I don’t really care about it. I can pay for like a million pairs of shoes now so I couldn’t care less-“

“Oh god,” Keith groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. “How are you still attracted to me?” He asked and rubbed his forehead. Lance laughed a little.

“What? Do you really think I’d stop liking you because you threw up on my shoes?”

“Yes!”

“Well uh sorry, sweetheart. You’re gonna have to try harder than that,” he said. Keith looked at Lance for a moment in disbelief. Lance finished his eggs and proceeded o wash his dish in the sink.

“You’re unbelievable,” he sighed. He didn’t mean it in a negative way.

“How so?” Lance asked and got closer to Keith. The model stiffened and drew closer to himself.

“You’re so…” he backed up against the counter. “…so different.”

“Uh, thanks? I guess,” Lance replied. He wasn’t looming or trying to intimidate Keith, and he wasn’t used to that. Lance was just standing there, and it took Keith’s breath away.

“I mean…” he trailed off looking up into his blue eyes. “No one has ever been this nice to me,” he explained. Lance frowned.

“Why?”

“Because…people usually don’t like me,” Keith admitted.

“Oh…” Lance didn’t press any further. Keith pulled himself off the counter and blinked up at Lance.

“People say I’m difficult to work with…and to date…and to talk to…and to-“

“That’s like so much bullshit,” Lance interrupted. Keith blinked.

“Uh? Not really.”

“It’s ridiculously easy to work with you. Even when you’re pissed at me, you're such a natural. Talking with you is really fun, and honestly sometimes I wonder why you’re so upset, but usually I understand with time.”

“You…do?”

“Yeah. I mean…if I thought you were trying to get with Coran…even though the idea of anyone with Coran would disgust me…I’d be pretty pissed. And if someone was looking at me in a really gross way I’d probably threaten to rip their eyes out too,” Lance replied. Keith furrowed his brows.

“Oh…”

“But anyways…you’re like actually pretty cool,” Lance said. Keith felt his heart race. “Plus you’re like ridiculously hot. Like no matter what you wear you’re a total bombshell. I mean, I’m bisexual and all but I’m simultaneously gay, straight, _and_ bi for you…I think. If that’s how your gender fluidity works,” Lance rambled. Keith couldn’t help his blush and slight smile.

“You’re an idiot,” he dismissed and turned around. Keith grabbed his plate and walked over to sit on his couch. Lance quickly followed and sat next to him.

“Can you blame me? I mean, your face is on almost every magazine. That’s gotta say something about you,” Lance continued. Keith took more bites and ignored him for a while. “But uh…I do have to admit I kinda like it better when you look like a guy,” he admitted. Keith instantly looked over at Lance and noticed how red he was. “Sorry If I…said something wrong,” he muttered.

“You…you don’t like me as a girl?” Keith asked. Lance raised a brow.

“Uh…I dunno if you’ve noticed, but you always look incredibly uncomfortable when you’re wearing girly shit. I mean in photos you’re stunning and gorgeous, but in real life I can tell you’d rather wear literally anything else but the skimpy clothes they put you in,” he said. Keith gaped at him for a moment, and then looked away.

“I…didn’t realized people could tell…”

“I dunno about anyone else, but I definitely noticed. Plus you look a lot more confident when you pose as male,” Lance said. 

     Keith looked at him again and felt his heart race faster. Lance licked his lips, and Keith noticed the action. Then he set his plate down and leaned closer. The musician was kinda surprised when he noticed Keith coming closer. His shirt was more buttoned up than when he first woke up, but he wasn’t sure of their placement now that Keith’s fingers played with the plastic. The model slowly undid Lance’s shirt and then finally met his eyes.

“You don’t see me as a girl, right?” He whispered. Lance frowned.

“It’s really hard for me to, but I guess if I tried really hard-“

“No…” Keith sighed. His eyes settled on Lance’s skin. He touched his abdomen and shivered as the warmth spread from his fingers tips down his spine. “I don’t care about the femininity to be honest,” he whispered. Lance gently touched Keith’s wrist.

“Yeah?” He murmured leaning even closer. Keith raised both hands to start pushing the sleeves down Lance’s arms.

“I…I’ve always been seen as…just a girl dressing as a guy,” he spoke hoarsely as Lance fogged up his mind. “Being androgynous and gender fluid got me more jobs…got me attention,” he breathed. Lance tilted his head to brush his lips over Keith’s neck. His shirt was down to his elbows now.

“Mm…I can see why,” Lance whispered. His low voice made Keith tremble and grab the fabric around his forearms.

“It’s not really who I am. I’m…I…” Lance pulled one of his arms loose from the confines of his shirt, and used it to pull Keith closer to him by his knee. “…I’m extremely attracted to you,” he breathed. Lance smirked against his skin, and then finally kissed his neck.

“That’s completely unrelated to what you were just saying,” Lance announced. 

     Keith grabbed his shoulder and touched down his arm. It was skinny, yes, but also kind of toned and defined. Lance nibbled his neck, and Keith gasped. The tan hand under his knee pulled him close again and slid up his thigh. It was crazy how sexy Lance made Keith feel in sweats and a baggy tee shirt. He wrapped his arms around Lance’s neck, and let the musician kiss and suck on his theist. There was probably most definitely a mark left over, but all Keith could think about was how warm Lance was, and how turned on he was in response.

“God…”Keith sighed. Lance trailed up to his jaw. “You are so good,” he breathed as Lance kissed the corner of his mouth. He stopped and smirked at Keith.

“Thanks. I’ve been told,” he murmured. Keith bit his lip as he looked at Lance’s.

“Oh yeah. You’re the lover boy in Austin, aren’t you?” Keith whispered.

“I’ve been around,” Lance nodded. Keith chuckled.

“Wish I could say the same,” he murmured and leaned close to kiss Lance. The kiss didn’t last long, because Lance was actively pulling away with wide eyes.

“Wait, are you a virgin?” He asked. Keith blinked and blushed.

“Uh…no…I-I’ve just…only has sex like three or four times,” Keith answered. Lance seemed really shocked by that.

“Wow, that’s…”

“What? Prude?” Keith asked, his flirtatiousness gone.

“Uh more like valuable and important information I wish you would’ve told me before you seduced me and undressed me on your couch,” Lance corrected. Keith frowned.

“What’s wrong with it?”

“Oh, nothing! Nothing at all!” Lance assured him. He backed up a bit. “It just…puts a little pressure on me, y’know? It’s been a while for you and uh…I don’t wanna like fuck this up,” Lance explained. Keith thought for a moment and then nodded.

“Okay…I guess that makes sense.”

“Keith,” Lance leaned closer again. “I like you. Like, I really like you. You are so indescribably attractive to me in like every way. I think maybe we should wait for a while before we uh…have sex and stuff,” Lance explained. Keith was actually surprised.

“You mean you don’t wanna fuck right now?” Keith asked. Lance shook his head.

“In all honestly I’d love to do absolutely anything with you, but I’m thinking we should ease into this to make sure you know that I’m serious about this,” Lance said. Keith’s heart melted.

“Serious…” he echoed.

“I know it’s kinda traditional, but-“ Lance didn’t finish because suddenly Keith was cupping his face and kissing him slow and sweet. Instead of trying to continue what he was saying, Lance accepted Keith’s affection. He kissed back, and settled his arms around Keith’s waist.

“Serious…” Keith breathed. Lance nodded and smiled.

“Yeah…I’m serious about you,” he murmured. 

     Then they were kissing again, and Lance found that he adored kissing Keith. Then, suddenly, the door bursted open, and they were faced with both of their managers looking at them. Lance more than half naked, and Keith clearly hungover, and both of them making out on the couch. Allura sighed, and shook her head.

“Well…this will make us a lot of money,” Coran said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmu:
> 
> Snapchat: ksenialynns  
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com  
> Insta: fryingpanss1.0


	7. Ray’s Pizza

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance doesn’t fully grasp the amount of fame he has

     Lance had an entire week in New York before he went home for Christmas. Even then he was due back for New Years, and then for spring break he would be in LA. Of course, he knew none of this yet because Coran was in the middle of planning it all. Instead he was concerned with courting his new partner, and taking Keith out on an actual date. Both their managers suggested they went somewhere very public and at least hold hands. Allura suggested leggings and a flowy blouse to Keith. Lance almost laughed at how stiff Keith was when he picked him up from his apartment, and suggested that he changed into something more comfortable.

     They walked hand in hand through Central Park, of course, and Keith was glad Lance suggested he washed off his makeup too. The fresh air felt so nice against his skin, and the lack of weight on his lashes was freeing to him. He decided to give Lance a break and stopped being so picky about what “upset” him. Lance was noticeably grateful for that, but still chose his words carefully. It was easy to forget everything when Keith was with Lance. It was easy to just exist with Lance too.

“Is there like a way you can describe your gender to me? One of your assistants tried and…I dunno. I didn’t really get it,” Lance said. Keith purses his lips.

“Uh…well, I supposed it’s like sometimes I feel more like a girl and other times I feel more like a guy,” he explained. Lance nodded.

“So it’s a feeling?”

“Yeah. Pretty much. Allura thinks that just because I feel like a girl that means I like girly things, but uh…”

“Couldn’t be further from the truth?” Lance asked. Keith nodded.

“Yeah. I endure it during photo shoots because the money is…it makes up for it.”

“Right? Like I hate over half the shit I’ve gone through since my music blew up, but they pay me so much. It’s ridiculous,” Lance said. Keith shrugged.

“‘Tis the life of the rich and famous. Don’t we deserve pity?” Keith joked. Lance laughed.

“As if. I’m leaving college debt free in a couple years. There’s barely any college students alive today that can say that. Plus, I’ve already paid off my mom’s school debt and mortgage, as well as Hunks loans, and rent is basically taken care of until we move out. All of that and I still have enough to fly back and forth between Austin and New York in a day for a photo shoot,” Lance rambled. Keith nodded.

“Sounds like you’ve got good things to do with your money,” he hummed.

“What about you?” Lance asked. “Any college debt? Home loans? Friends?”

“Uh…not really. I started modeling on fucking Instagram a few years ago before I graduated high school, and suddenly I was signing a contract with Ford Models. Since then it’s mostly gone towards traveling and retirement.”

“I guess you really have to invest in that if you’re a model,” Lance nodded. Keith sighed.

“Yeah.”

“Well, uh…how about we get something to eat? We’ve been walking in circles for like 20 minutes,” Lance suggested. Keith smirked.

“Alright. Want any suggestions for what’s good, or can you make your way around the big city?” He asked. Lance thought for a moment.

“As much as I value your input, I think I know where we should go,” he said with a smile. Keith stopped walking to look up at the musician.

“Lead the way then.”

     It took Keith five seconds to realize where Lance was taking them, and almost regretted trusting him so much. While Keith was expecting at least a semi-formal restaurant, Lance apparently was thinking of a fucking pizza place. Keith could feel a million eyes on him as Lance lead him inside the pizza restaurant. While Keith was more than aware of the attention on them, Lance appeared to be totally oblivious to it. Even when the restaurant was playing _his_ song, and one of the employees dropped a bunch of empty cups on the ground.

“Lance, what are we doing here?” Keith whispered in his ear. Lance looked at his partner.

“What do you mean?”

“This isn’t really the best place for people like us, Lance,” he said bluntly. Lance looked around.

“What? A Ray’s pizza? C’mon, I feel right at home here,” Lance replied and then walked up to the display. Keith reluctantly followed and watched as the flustered employee picked up his cups.

“What’s your favorite flavor?” Lance asked.

“Uh…pineapple,” Keith answered. He was distracted by the sudden crowd of people outside the restaurant.

“No way,” Lance said incredulously. Keith finally looked back at the musician and frowned.

“What?”

“I can’t believe you’re a pineapple pizza kinda person. I’m gonna have to reconsider being seen in public with you,” he teased and shook his head. Keith rolled his eyes.

“There’s nothing wrong with liking pineapple on pizza,” he said.

“Except there _is_ ,” Lance insisted. Keith raised a brow at Lance, finally completely focusing on their date instead of the fact that they were being photographed.

“Really?”

“Yup.”

“Okay then, pizza police. What’s wrong with it?” He poked. Lance giggled a little.

“Well, as the pizza sherif-“ he giggled some more. “-I say it’s just not right, and whoever thought it was a good idea was probably stoned,” he finished.

“Stoned? Are you serious?” Keith found himself grinning.

“Yes. Completely blazed. 100% high.”

“What makes you come to that conclusion?”

“Well people who get high get weird cravings. I know one time I really wanted to put French fries in my burger and I was high as balls-“ Keith snorted and covered his mouth. “Ohmygodyousnortthatwasadorable,” Lance said in one breath. Keith blinked up at him with red cheeks and pulled his hand away.

“I-it doesn’t happen often. Ignore that,” he stuttered nervously. Lance just looked at him for a moment and then shook his head.

“Nah. I’m gonna remember that forever,” he said.

“Lance-“

“I’m gonna replay it over and over again until it’s burned in there forever,” he continued and walked to the cashier. Keith followed.

“Oh my god, Lance-“

“Oh! There it goes again. You’re so cute when you crinkle your nose.”

“ _Lance_ -“

“Hi, what can I get you?” The cashier asked.

“Hey, can I get one slice of pepperoni and one slice of Hawaiian pizza please?” Lance responded as he pulled out his wallet. Keith rolled his eyes and shook his head.

“Sure thing. Hey, uh…your probably get this a lot, but you look a lot like that new singer who’s blowing up right now,” the cashier said. Lance blinked.

“Not really. Who?”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Keith sighed and covered his face with his palm. The cashier pointed up, referring to the song playing in the restaurant.

“This guy. Lance McClain. Funny you didn’t notice. He’s all over the place. All the girls go kinda crazy when he’s on, and he’s almost always on one of the billboards in Times Square,” the guy went on. Lance’s eyes widened.

“Lance…Sanchez McClain?”

“Yeah, that’s the guy.”

“Oh…Yeah,” he handed the guy his debit card.

“You still use a debit card?” Keith asked. Lance shrugged.

“I dunno. I’ve been a bit too busy to open a credit card,” he replied.

“Oh my god,” the cashier went pale as he read the name. He looked at Lance. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t think you’d actually come into my restaurant.”

“Uh, what?”

“ _You’re_ Lance McClain!” He exclaimed. Lance’s ignorance was suddenly popped, and he was surrounded by the attention he was blissfully unaware of.

“Uh…Yeah…”

“Its on the house. Please, I can’t let you pay,” the cashier insisted.

“Oh, no it’s no problem-“

“No no! I insist!” He claimed and handed the card back to Lance. He sighed.

“Can I at least pay for someone else? I don’t wanna just not pay for this,” Lance tried. The cashier frowned.

“Pay for someone else?”

“Yeah, man. I don’t _need_ free pizza, but I’m sure someone else does,” Lance went on. Keith took his hand away from his face and looked at Lance thoughtfully.

“Wow, that’s…that’s really nice of you.”

“Uh, like about how many slices do you sell in a day?” Lance asked.

“Depends on the day. At the most we sell…about three pies of each flavor.”

“Then I’ll pay for 12 pies,” Lance said handing back his card.

“Okay then…thank you,” he said and started typing out his receipt. Keith leaned closer to Lance.

“That’s really nice of you,” Keith murmured. Lance shrugged.

“I seriously don’t need free pizza. I dunno why celebrities get a bunch of free stuff. They get millions of dollars and yet free shit? Where’s the logic in that?” Lance rambled. Keith forced a bit of a smile, but it was in pity.

“Well, Lance…I dunno if you understand, but…you _are_ a celebrity now,” Keith told him.

“God, it’s so weird to think about,” he muttered and looked out the window. Funny how once he was aware of being filmed did he realize how uncomfortable it made him. “I think I get what you were saying earlier…”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah…”

“Alright…here’s your receipt, and your pizza’s,” the cashier said. Lance returned his attention to the employee and accepted the receipt. Keith took the pizzas.

“Thanks,” he said.

“No, thank you,” the cashier said. Lance nodded and turned around and walked away with Keith.

“Now how the fuck do we get out of here?” He asked.

“Well, we just gotta power through it.”

“Yeah, next time let’s have disguises,” he said. Keith couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“What? Do you think glasses and a hat will trick people into thinking you _aren’t_  the most desirable musician in New York right now?” Keith questioned. Lance blushed a little.

“… _the_ most? Or like top five most desi-“

“Literally _the_  most,” Keith confirmed. Lance sighed.

“I guess not. Anyways, let’s get through this crowd.”

 

* * *

 

“Lance, did you buy an entire day of sales for one of the Ray’s pizza?” Coran called from the living room in Lance’s hotel room. He and Keith laughed as they laid on his bed and finished up their pizza.

“Sounds like you got caught,” Keith whispered teasingly.

“For what? Feeding people?” Lance replied.

“You probably made that the most famous Ray’s pizza in New York,” Keith replied. Lance shrugged.

“Oh well…”

“Keith!” Allura called.

“Fuck,” Keith quickly took his last two bites and tossed his plate into the mini trash can next to Lance’s bed. He wiped the grease from his mouth just as his own manager bursted in.

“Save it. I already saw the pictures,” she said crossing her arms.

“C’mon, it was just pizza-“

“And you’re just a person with the worlds slowest metabolism. I told you cheat days are Saturdays,” she said. Keith shrugged.

“Lance surprised me. It was cute and he paid,” Keith told her.

“And all the fucking sales for today!” Coran called.

“What’s the big fuss? We just went out to get pizza. It was really public like you said,” Lance defended. Allura sighed.

“Lance, I don’t believe you truly understand the power you now posses,” she said obviously trying to stay calm.

“What power?”

“You’ve disrupted the stock market! Ray’s pizza is now $500 a share!” Coran nearly screamed.

“That can’t be because of me…could it?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” Keith sighed and laid back in the bed.

“What’s with this outfit? We didn’t decide on jeans. I told you no binding on weekdays. What happened to the makeup artist I sent to you apartment this morning?” Allura basically interrogated Keith.

“She was there,” Keith said.

“ _And?_ “

“And then when Lance arrived he laughed and he said I should try something more casual,” Keith answered.

“Casual? There’s nothing more casual than a girl in leggings and a blouse.”

“With fake eyelashes and ten pounds of jewelry? I felt like a clown,” Keith argued.

“Doesn’t matter what you feel like, darling. You know this,” she said. Keith sighed.

“What’s the big deal?” Lance asked. Allura gave him a death glare.

“Listen, I know you’re used to shopping at grocery stores and wearing jeans everyday, but in this line of work you need a little more sophistication. Everyday you’re constantly photographed, and if you’re a woman-“ Keith was obviously uncomfortable with the implication in Allura’s voice “-they ridicule you for having a body and rip you to shreds. So maybe find some self control and stop acting like you’re just an average college student on holiday in the big city. Because, incase you forgot, you’re _not anymore_.” Allura then turned around and left the two alone in Lance’s room again. Lance was silent for a moment, and Keith shifted uncomfortably.

“Sorry about that. She gets…kinda lecture-y,” Keith muttered.

“Not your fault. She’s just…a little rude.”

“She thinks very technically. It doesn’t really bother me,” Keith was obviously lying. Lance didn’t want to prod. Keith looked hurt enough as it was. Instead he got off the bed and held out his hand.

“C’mon.” Keith looked at his outstretched palm and then at Lance.

“Where?” He asked.

“Why dont you show me around the city? I haven’t really had a chance to get to know the place that well,” Lance said. Keith smiled and accepted Lance’s hand.

“Okay, but only if we go back to my place afterwards and you make me dinner,” Keith compromised. Lance chuckled and nodded.

“Alright. I think I can do that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmu
> 
> Snap: ksenialynns  
> Insta: lynnart1998  
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com


	8. Rodeos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Interviewing takes a lot of energy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn’t edit this probanly

“How are you liking New York?” It was a simple question, but it felt less simple coming from someone so famous in front of burning lights and an audience. Lance felt himself sweating and he laughed nervously.

“It’s uh…it’s definitely different,” he said. His tongue felt like it was sweating too. That couldn’t be normal. Maybe he needed a doctor. The host and the audience laughed.

“Is it that bad?” He asked. Lance shook his head.

“No no, it’s not bad at all. It’s just…y’know…New York…”

“Yes,” he nodded in agreement.

“And I’m from…Texas,” Lance felt so awkward explaining it.

“I see. So less rodeos?” The host teased. Lance sighed with a smile. His body felt wrong.

“Uh, yeah. Less…rodeos…”

“You seem nervous, you okay?” He asked.

“I dunno. I’ve been on TV like five times now but it doesn’t get any less nerve wracking.”

“I see. Speaking of nerves…you were spotted the other day with Keith Kogane,” he said. The audience chuckled, and so did Lance. He nodded.

“Yeah, I’ve been told I disrupted the stock market when we went out to pizza,” Lance said.

“Yeah, that’s great and all, but I don’t think you understand how unusual it is for someone to go out with Keith Kogane and live,” he said. Lance raised a brow as the audience laughed. He didn’t think it was that funny. He knew how insecure Keith was about his datability.

“He’s not that bad,” Lance said. The host was taken aback by the pronouns Lance used.

“Is that it? He? I’ve read so many sources that tell me he goes by she or they.”

“Uh…I would avoid calling him she. It makes him kind of uncomfortable,” Lance said. “But anyways, he’s kinda like a cat. I mean, yeah he can do some damage, but overall he’s just really cute,” he explained. The host laughed, and Lance was already getting tired of the audience.

“I don’t think Keith would like that comparison,” the host said. Lance shrugged.

“He’s likes me, so that’s all that matters,” Lance replied with a smug grin.

“You’re kinda blushing right now, I hope you now that.” Lance opened his mouth to speak, but giggled nervously instead.

“I guess I like him too is all.” The collective “aw” from the audience felt a little patronizing.

“Well, that’s really sweet. Are you two Facebook official or is it a work in progress?” He asked. Lance rolled his eyes over the laughter.

“Oh please, Keith can barely use his Instagram without his manager, do you really think he knows how to change his relationship status on Facebook? If anything he’s still using MySpace,” Lance said. It wasn’t as funny as the crowd made it out to be. Even the host was laughing a little too hard.

“I see I see. You have a point-“ He was interrupted by a buzzing sound from Lance’s pocket.

“Yo, just a sec,” Lance said when e recognized the vibration pattern. He read the message from Keith and shook his head. “He’s watching this, and he’s mad at me now,” Lance announced. Right on cue, a wave of artificial laughter rolled over him.

“What did he say?” The host asked.

“He said ‘one, I’m not cute and I hate you,’ and ‘two, at least I respond to my fans on twitter’,” Lance read.

“Ohh show the camera,” The host prompted. Lance did and he watched the monitor zoom in on his phone.

     Then another message popped up saying “I didn’t ask for this publicity, put me down”.

 

* * *

 

 

     When Lance got back from the interview he felt completely drained. He could only handle so much of the fame and attention at a time, which was odd because he had always dreamed about it. Little did he know how _un_ fun his manager would be. So far he never had a free moment to himself that day until just then. Since he woke up it’s been performances, interviews, photo shoots, and the occasional food break. He sighed and immediately flopped down on his couch.

“Lance?” Called a familiar voice from his bedroom.

     All he wanted to do was fall asleep on the sofa, but he eventually dragged himself to his bedroom to meet the person attached to that comforting voice. He leaned against the door frame and smiled at Keith. He was comfortable in his sheets with the tv remote and a half eaten bag of low calorie popcorn.

“Even when they’re asking about me, you’re all I can talk about,” Lance said. Keith blushed and shook his head.

“A cat? Really?” Lance laughed and approached the bed. “I’m not like a cat,” Keith murmured and lifted a piece of popcorn to his lips. 

     Before he could eat it, Lance crawled over on the bed to him and pulled it away. He couldn’t protest because his lips were suddenly covered by Lance’s, and he eased into the kiss. When Lance pulled back, Keith’s eyes were stuck on his mouth.

“I missed you,” Lance whispered.

“You saw me yesterday,” Keith replied.

“And I haven’t seen you since then,” Lance continued.

“W-we were both busy,” Keith stuttered.

“Did you miss me?” Lance asked. Keith hesitated for a moment, and then nodded. Lance smiled and kissed him again.

“Did you really put hearts around my name on your phone?” Keith asked. Lance blushed and laughed nervously.

“You saw that, huh?” He asked pulling back. He sighed and then shrugged. “Yeah. I can get a little sappy.”

“Don’t go writing songs about me just yet, it haven’t even been a week,” Keith said with a smirk. Lance rolled his eyes.

“We may have only been going out for three days, but I haven’t stopped thinking about you ever since I first spilled coffee on you,” Lance said smoothly. Keith’s smile widened a little.

“I guess that makes two of us,” he whispered. Then he set his popcorn aside and crawled closer to Lance. “Ever since we met I couldn’t figure out why I was so attracted to you.”

“It was easy for me,” Lance murmured as Keith moved between his legs.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah…You’ve got really nice legs,” Lance said. Keith lightly smacked his shoulder, and they laughed.

“Hopefully you like me for more than my body,” Keith spoke with a smile, but there was a hint of anxiety in his voice. 

     Before Lance could ponder it, Keith was kissing him again. He couldn’t quite understand how he managed to successfully romance the nations, current, most beloved model. He was kissing lips that have been across magazines and billboards. He held a face that had millions of likes in Instagram, and touched soft skin that was worth more than all of the worlds diamonds and Pearls. It was almost like a dream, and all at once Lance was suddenly overwhelmed by how much he liked Keith. His bratty attitude, and funny sense of humor had a perfect dichotomy that fit perfectly in a dichotomy of their own. Keith was Lance’s opposite more than he was not, and that was just the way Lance liked it.

     When the kiss broke, all Lance could do was stare at Keith’s lips. Their breath mingled with each other, and then Keith was touching Lance. His hand made its path down Lance’s side, and then his hip, and finally his thigh. There was a noticeable shift in the mood and their interactions. Lance couldn’t say he wasn’t surprised when Keith suddenly had him pinned against the bed. He couldn’t even say that he could envision Keith on top of him like this even as it was happening. It was so easy to see Keith as sexually docile, but now that he actually thought about it he realized how incredibly stupid that was to assume. Of all places, the bedroom would be the last place Keith would submit to someone.

     Lance let out a breathy moan as Keith kissed his neck. All Lance could do was lay back while Keith touched him more. Pale hands smoothed down to his waist, and then he was holding his body closer. With his lower back lifted from the mattress, Lance bit his lip. The last time he was treated like this he put off breaking up with the guy for another month. Now he was in so much bliss he was ready to propose to Keith on the spot. Lance had a bad habit of confusing pleasure for commitment, but sometimes it mattered.

“I like it when you talk about us on television,” Keith whispered. Lance let out a breath, and then twirled his hips a little.

“Yeah?” He whispered back. Keith did his teeth into Lance’s neck, and slowly rugged on the skin. Lance clenched his teeth to avoid making a sound.

“Yeah,” Keith murmured and kissed up to his jaw.

“I like talking about you in general,” Lance sighed. Keith chuckled and started to unbutton Lance’s jeans.

“Do you?” He spoke softly, yet deeply against Lance’s lips. Lance nodded and tried to kiss Keith again. “You’re a lot more compliant than I thought you would,” He said. Lance wiggles his hips as Keith pulled at his jeans more.

“I’m just tryna get these damn pants off, baby,” he spoke seductively. 

     Keith bit his lip, and Lance appreciated just how _masculine_ keith could be when he wanted. He was always rather boyish, and it was easy to tell that he presented as a male, but when he wanted to turn it up god was it hot. Lance finally put his limbs to use and pulled away to take his jeans off. He had to reluctantly wiggle out from under Keith and then let his feet hang off the side of the bed. Arms immediately wrapped around his waist, and lips pressed against his neck.

“Just so you know…this is usually how I am in relationships,” he said. Lance smiled a little.

“So you’re a top?” He teased looking at Keith over his shoulder. Keith pulled away and looked back at him. He rolled his eyes.

“I mean, yes and no. Kinda hard to be a top without a dick, but I try,” Keith replied. Lance giggled. A little out of nerves, but also because what Keith said was kinda funny. He then laid on the bed again and smiled up at his boyfriend.

“I guess we’ll have to try together sometime,” Lance teased as he dragged his finger over Keith’s jaw.

“What happened to waiting?” Keith asked.

“I never said anytime soon,” Lance answered. “Don’t get too ahead of yourself, mister,” he poked Keith’s nose. Keith merely kept smiling and then leaned down to kiss him again. Lance could get used to that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmu
> 
> Snapchat: ksenialynns  
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com  
> Insta: @lynnart1998


	9. Austin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s the holidays

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah I’m not really editing these so sorry for the spelling errors. I’m just popping these out bc I’ve been bored. I don’t even know if it makes sense with the first five chapters bc I deleted everything I had written after 5 and started from scratch. It’s been so long since I’ve written fan fiction so I feel weird doing it lmao

     Lance woke up and immediately regretted it. Instead of waking up to the privacy and intimacy of Keith, he was greeted with two stiff and annoying managers sitting around them. He closed his eyes again and pretended to keep sleeping against Keith’s chest, but his efforts to fall back asleep were in vain.

“I see you young man. You can’t pretend you’re not awake,” Allura said.

“You’re not my manager, so I don’t care,” he mumbled in response. Keith held Lance closer to his chest, and Lance smiled at how warm and cushiony it felt to be wrapped in such a stone cold persons affection.

“Lance, we should talk about your schedule,” Coran said.

“Mmm…lemme guess. Photo shoots…performing…more interviews,” he mumbled tiredly.

“No, actually. You go home today,” Coran announced. Lance’s eyes snapped open, and he jerked up. Keith’s arms were loose around his waist as he looked back at Coran.

“Uh, what?”

“Tomorrow is Christmas Eve. You said you wanted to spend the holidays with your family, remember?” Coran told him. Lance was silent for a moment as he thought about it.

“Uh…what about Keith?” He asked.

“What about Keith?” Allura pipped in.

“Well, is he going somewhere for Christmas? Where’s his parents?” Lance asked. Coran and Allura were both quiet for a moment.

“Keith doesn’t have any parents,” Allura announced. Lance looked down at Keith and felt his heart hurt.

“Oh…”

“His schedule is at least free for him to spend it how he likes, but he usually spends it alone,” Allura continued.

“Well, doesn’t he sometime have a drink with Shiro?” Coran asked.

“Still. It’s not much,” Allura said.

“Wow, that’s crazy,” Lance murmured and watched his boyfriend continued to sleep blissfully.

“My god, he’s a heavy sleeper,” Allura sighed.

“Your flight is in a few hours, Lance. I don’t know how much you want to pack. You’ll be back up here on the twenty-seventh,” Coran told him. Lance looked up at his manager.

“Uh…is there a way we could get another ticket or…whatever?” He asked. Coran frowned.

“I suppose it’s not impossible. Why?”

“I wanna bring Keith home with me,” he said. Allura and Coran were quiet again.

“You…”

“You want to bring a _supermodel_ to Austin?” Allura asked. Lance looked at her and frowned.

“Keith is so much more than a supermodel,” he said.

“ _Exactly_ ,” Allura hissed and marched out of the room to make a phone call.

“What’s she so mad about?” Lance asked.

“Well…Allura is very particular about when and where Keith appears. He doesn’t go to a lot of events, so it’s more impactful when he does,” Coran explained.

“So she keeps him cooped up in his apartment most of the time?”

“Eh. It’s kind of both their fault. Keith doesn’t actually do much. I’ve known Allura for years, but I also know Keith, and they’re not exactly the best for each other. Not the worst, but not the best.”

“Care to explain that?” Lance sassed. Coran shrugged.

“They would do really well working with other people, but at the same time they know each other so well that Keith wouldn’t really be comfortable with anyone else,” Coran attempted.

“He doesn’t seem very comfortable with her in the first place…”

“Ah! You mean when Allura calls Keith a girl and he doesn’t like it! Frankly, that’s Allura being bitchy and trying to upset Keith. Most of the time she respects his pronouns and his gender. She’s really been digging into him recently because of the reckless behavior and influence he’s had,” Coran explained successfully. Although Lance doubted she was intentional with making Keith uncomfortable.

“What influence?” Lance asked.

“You,” Coran answered simply. Lance opened his mouth to speak, but stopped when Allura stepped back into the room.

“You and Keith are flying to Austin tonight in the company jet,” she announced. Lance was speechless “you’re welcome,” she said before leaving again. Coran got up and followed her just as Keith woke up. He stretched, and that was enough to capture Lance’s attention again. He looked down at his boyfriend again, and Keith smiled back happily.

“Morning,” He murmured. Lance licked his dry lips, hesitating to speak. Eventually, he had to.

“Wanna come to Austin with me tonight?”

 

* * *

 

 

     It was kind of weird seeing someone as visually striking and stunning as Keith walking around in his hometown. Austin was very different from New York. Even in the winter it was warmer, and there was never any snow. Lance took Keith to his appartement and met up with Hunk. He had only given Hunk the heads up that Keith was coming with him after he landed. Mostly because he forgot to, but also because it was hilarious to receive his freaked out messages on the way home. Keith was surprisingly okay with meeting Lance’s family. It was already dark when they landed, so they spent the evening in the apartment. When they arrived, Hunk was in the middle of vacuuming the floor. He had a panicked expression on as Lance opened the front door.

“What the _fuck_  man!” Hunk yelled over the vacuum. Lance laughed as Keith peeked over his shoulder. Hunk turned bright red and turned off the machine.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry about the mess,” Hunk said to Keith despite the spotless apartment.

“Mess?” Keith whispered to Lance.

“He’s a little bit of a clean freak sometimes,” Lance replied.

“ _Especially_  when there’s company. Why didn’t you tell me sooner, man?” Hunk grumbled.

“It’s fun,” Lance replied and stepped in. Keith looked around and Lance took his bag.

“I’ll put this is my room,” he said and kissed Keith on the cheek.

“Okay,” Keith replied and closed the door behind him. Hunk was putting away the vacuum as Lance walked past him and down the hall. Keith took off his shoes and continued to take in the new environment. It was very nicely furnished for a not so expensive looking apartment.

“I’ve been furniture shopping since Lance has been out of town. It was kinda meant to be a surprise, but I dunno if he’ll notice,” Hunk spoke.

“I’m sure he will eventually,” Keith replied. Hunk walked back to Keith and held out his hand.

“We haven’t really been properly introduced. I’m Hunk, Lance’s roommate and life long best friend,” he announced. Keith accepted his hand and gave it a firm shake.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Keith. Lance’s boyfriend,” Keith replied. His lips curled into a smile as his title slipped between them.

“Wow, he really managed to get you to date him, huh?” Hunk teased. Keith shrugged.

“I decided to give him a chance. He’s very stubborn.” Hunk laughed just as Lance came back in.

“Oh good, you guys are already friendly,” Lance said. Hunk looked back at him.

“You’re in New York for a week and you’re already dating a model, huh?” Lance blushed a little, but smiled proudly.

“I mean, there’s no way he could resist me,” Lance grinned. Keith rolled his eyes and shook his head.

“Right…well, are you guys hungry? I’ve got some fish in the oven,” Hunk offered. Just as he mentioned fish the smell hit Keith, and his stomach growled. “I’ll take that as a yes,” he walked back into the kitchen.

“Have you redecorated the whole place since I’ve been gone or something?” Lance asked leaning against their counter. Keith walked up next to him.

“I told you he would notice,” Keith murmured.

“Huh?”

“Hell yeah! With all this extra cash? Even after I buy a shit load of toys to donate, and meals for the families in need, I can still redecorate our shitty apartment!” Hunk exclaimed.

“Wow, I see Lance’s big heart isn’t alone down here,” Keith said.

“Huh?” Hunk asked.

“Lance totally bought out a pizza place in New York for the day. He bought an entire day’s worth of sales for them to give out to people,” Keith explained. Lance nodded as if it was the logical thing to do.

“Dude, I did something like that at that one coffee place we like,” Hunk said.

“Dude, no way!”

“Yeah! You should’ve seen the guys face, he was totally freaking out.”

“Money is crazy, huh?” Lance sighed.

“Yeah…”

“Of all the people I’ve met in this industry, none of them would give up as much as a cent to a homeless person on the street,” Keith told them.

“Really?” Hunk asked.

“That’s rich,” Lance muttered.

“Yeah. I was dating this music producer once and he wouldn’t even look at them. He thought I was ditzy for giving a guy a fifty,” Keith said.

“Wow, what a tool,” Hunk scoffed.

     The oven went off and he grabbed his oven mitts. The smell amplified, and Keith was even more eager to eat. Hunk pulled out the tray and grinned at the glistening salmon.

“Bone apple teeth!” He announced. Keith stifled a chuckle, and Lance rolled his eyes.

 

* * *

 

“How many people have you dated?” Lance asked. Keith was busy running his finger through Lance’s hair when the question popped up. Hunk was snoring in his room, and the couple was watching old Christmas movies. His fingers stopped.

“I think…three or four guys. Mostly people from high school, and then that one music producer I mentioned earlier,” Keith answered.

“How long ago was that?”

“Mmm…three years ago, I think. I was 19 and just starting to grab some peoples attention. It was before I was working with Allura, I remember that much…” Keith trailed off into a sigh. “It wasn’t a pleasant relationship.

“I kinda figured from what you said earlier.”

“What about you?” Keith asked.

“Hm?” Lance looked up at him.

“How many partners?” He clarified.

“Oh…uh, I’m not sure. There was a phase I went through in high school where I was fooling around a lot, but I wasn’t committed to one person. I kinda grew out of that senior year and had a really good boyfriend for a few months, but he was kinda boring. Uh…then I had a girlfriend a year ago,” Lance said.

“I see,” Keith replied.

“I was kind of a slut…” he confessed. Keith laughed a little.

“I never would’ve guessed. Lance pushed himself up to give Keith a playful glare.

“Watch yourself,” he warned.

“Or what?” Keith challenged. He glanced down at Lance’s lips, and watched him blush. Lance smiled a little and leaned closer.

“Or else I’ll kick you in the shins,” he spoke with no promise in his words. Keith touched Lance down his back, and his boyfriend tensed and relaxed in response.

“Would you?” Keith questioned. Lance tilted his head to fit with Keith’s.

“Maybe,” He murmured before he kissed Keith. “Or maybe I’ll do something else,” he continued. Keith kissed him again.

“Do tell,” He whispered between kisses.

“Mm…Maybe I’ll never talk to you again,” Lance continued.

“As if you could manage that,” Keith spoke softly as he leaned into Lance more.

“Then…” another kiss. “Then maybe I won’t let you kiss me…” and then another.

“Fat chance,” Keith breathed against his lips. He was leaning so heavily into Lance that the musician was holding himself up with his arm behind him.

“I-“ more kisses. “I-I…” this time he kissed Keith.

“Lance,” Keith’s voice was thick against Lance’s lips, and suddenly they were in a similar position to last night. Keith’s hands were on Lance’s waist, and then he was tugging him closer by his thighs.

“Manhandle me, why don’t ya?” Lance snarked under his breath.

“Don’t mind if I do,” Keith replied with a grin. 

     They kissed again, and Lance teased his tongue against Keith’s lips. Before he knew it, Keith was reciprocating, and he was easily overpowered by the model. That didn’t mean he didn’t try. It was just so hard to keep up when his heart was enthusiastically thumping in his chest. Keith could probably feel it, but he didn’t care. All he care about was the heat that came from him, and how wet his mouth was. Lance moaned when Keith broke away to kiss his neck.

“Fuck…” Lance sighed. 

     Keith continued to kiss down his neck until he got to Lance’s collar bones peaking out from his shirt. He sucked on the bone, and slowly slid his hands under Lance’s shirt. The fabric rolled up with Keith’s fingers, and soon Keith was kissing down Lance’s chest too. When those deep eyes flicked up at Lance, it was one hell of a sight to see. Lance nearly passed out from how light Keith made him feel. His hips were pushed up, and that caused his legs to widen. Keith made himself comfortable between them and gently dug his thumbs into Lance’s hip bones. The musician moaned softly again, and then rolled his hips up.

“You’re killing me,” Lance murmured. Keith smirked against his abdomen, and then looked up at Lance again.

“What? Don’t tell me you’re getting hard over this,” He cooed and stroked his thighs. Lance bit his lip.

“Why would I be? It’s not like the hottest model in America is kissing my stomach and touching me in a suggestive way,” He snarked. Keith laughed and pressed one last kiss above Lance’s belly button. He went back to Lance’s lips and kissed him sweetly.

“You have a point,” he hummed. Lance smiled and wrapped his arms around Keith’s shoulders.

“Besides, we cant have sex now. It’ll be totally awkward tomorrow when you meet my mom,” Lance said. Keith suddenly seemed a little nervous.

“Oh…you mean I’m actually gonna meet her?” He asked. Lance pulled back and blinked.

“Yeah…I mean, I told you that you’re gonna meet my family,” Lance reminded him. Keith nodded.

“Yeah…Yeah, I guess I just…didn’t really think about that,” he stammered and got off of Lance. Lace sat up too.

“Is that okay?” He asked.

“Uh…Yeah, I think I’m just nervous…” Keith murmured.

“That’s okay. It’s totally normal to be nervous about it. I mean, we’ve only been dating for less than a week, so-“

“Can we go to bed? I’m tired now,” Keith interrupted. “Sorry…didn’t meant to interrupt,” he apologized for his rudeness. Lance nodded.

“No, it’s okay. Yeah, let’s just turn this off and we can sleep in my room,” he said. Keith nodded.

“Thanks.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmu:
> 
> Snapchat: ksenialynns  
> Insta: @lynnart1998  
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com


	10. Christmas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith is over for the holidays

     Christmas was kind of weird. It wasn’t necessarily bad, but it was kind of tense. Keith was okay at first, but he had a bit more wine at dinner than what was probably acceptable for a family gathering. Lance eventually told him quietly that he should probably stop, and Keith nodded with half lidded eyes. He surrendered his wine glass, and Lance disposed of the contents.

     The present exchange was nice because Lance’s and Hunk’s mothers were not expecting such nice presents. The little cousins fawned over their new expensive toys, and the aunts and uncles all were flabbergasted by just how much money Lance and Hunk spent on them. Keith sat awkwardly through it all, but smiled when he saw how happy everyone was. He blinked slowly at Lance, and watched him throughout most of the process. Before he knew it, it was time to go.

     Keith was relaxed in the car ride home. He leaned against Lance’s shoulder, and let his eyes droop. When they arrived at the apartment, Lance helped him walk sleepily up the stairs. Finally, he fell face forward into Lance’s bed and sighed. His boyfriend giggled.

“Tired?” Lance asked. Keith nodded. “Well don’t fall asleep just yet. You haven’t opened your present,” He said. Keith frowned and blinked at Lance.

“What?”

“Your present,” Lance said reaching into his drawer and pulling out a neatly wrapped gift. It was small, and Keith pushed himself up to get a better look at it. It was kinda small, and the ribbon tied around it was red silk.

“I…shit…” he sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know we were getting gifts for each other,” Keith murmured. Lance laughed and sat on the bed with him.

“Don’t worry. I wasn’t expecting anything from you. Although, I accept late gifts if you feel like you need to get me something,” Lance winked. Keith smiled a little and accepted the gift.

“You’re cute.” 

     Keith started to open the gift. He gently pulled off the ribbon and popped off the top of the box. His head fell when he saw the contents, and then he couldn’t stop laughing. It started with a subtle shaking in his shoulders, and then he was giggling, and before he knew it he was laughing uncontrollably against the bed. Lance grinned at his boyfriend and pushed some of his hair out of the way of his red face. Finally, Keith calmed down.

“Do you like it?” Lance asked. Keith pulled out the Starbucks gift card out of the box and nodded.

“It’s perfect,” Keith whispered.

“I’m glad. Oh, there’s like two hundred dollars and ninety nine cents on it, by the way,” he told Keith.

“That’s a specific number,” Keith acknowledged.

“I thought about putting on three hundred, but like that seemed excessive,” Lance replied. Keith laughed and sat up.

“I love it,” he whispered and leaned in to kiss Lance on the lips.

“I’m glad,” Lance hummed. “Now lets get some sleep. You look like you’re about to pass out.”

     They slept soundly that night. Keith found comfort around Lance’s waist, and loved how he was basically a human heater. It was kind of scary how fast Keith was falling for Lance. It was like he was some type of drug, and Keith wanted to roll around in him all day. Touching his soft skin was better than taking oxy back stage with his fellow models. Kissing him was hotter than any passion he ever felt under burning lights all day. Holding him was more comforting than being alone in his apartment. It was starting to get to him, and it was definitely starting to scare him. He was relieved when Lance only got him a Starbucks card. If it had been a fancy watch or a diamond necklace like Lance had got for his family members, he would’ve felt a little more…normal. 

     The reality was that Lance was the normal one. He was the one raised in an average income household, and he was the one who was currently going to college. Besides his millions of adoring fans, he was an average college student who liked to make music. Keith was used to being courted by expensive looking men, and being gifted diamonds and pearls galore. He was treated like a flower, and he regularly received designer brand bags and dresses and shoes he had no desire to wear off set. In fact, he mostly gave them away to thrift stores. Lance giving him a Starbucks gift card overwhelmed Keith with relief, but it also terrified him. Because it just confirmed that Lance was unlike anyone Keith had ever been with before, and it also sealed in Keith’s fate of falling in love with the goofy musician from Texas.

     When Keith woke up, Lance was absent. He heard music softly through the crack in the door. His head hurt from being hungover, but the music didn’t make it worse. It was a smooth sound, and the bass was soft and fuzzy. He decided to get up and investigate, only to find Lance and Hunk listening to the source of the music in their living room. They were listening _intently_. Their faces were painted with concentration and thought. So much thought that Lance didn’t even notice Keith until he sat next to him. He broke away from staring at Hunk’s laptop and greeted Keith with a kiss on the cheek.

“Morning,” he grinned. Keith smiled back.

“Morning,” he murmured blinking tiredly.

“This is what Hunk has been working on since I’ve been gone,” Lance said. Keith nodded.

“I like it,” he hummed.

“We’re gonna work on some lyrics later today. Until then, you don’t you get dressed and I’ll make you some breakfast,” Lance suggested. Keith sighed and nodded.

“Sound good,” he murmured and stood up. Lance stood with him and kissed his cheek.

“Good.”

     Getting dressed was easy considering all Keith packed was two pairs of jeans, three shirts, and his favorite binder. It was crumpled on He floor from last night, and he peeled off his night shirt to wiggle into the compressing garment. He sighed with relief once it was on, and then got to the rest. Once he was fully dressed he sat on the bed and checked his phone. He had three missed calls from Shiro and two from his doctor. Anxiety instantly shot through him. He ignored it for now.

     Lance was making pancakes in the kitchen with Hunk. There was music in the background, but Lance’s voice took the spotlight. He sang along beautifully to the classic songs coming from their new surround sound system Hunk installed. By the time Keith walked back in, Lance was serenading him with Frank Sinatra. It was hard not to be charmed by a man who could sing, and Keith was past resisting. Instead he smiled as Lance sang to him and kissed his cheek.

“How was your sleep?” Lance asked.

“It wasn’t bad,” Keith hummed.

“That’s good.”

“Our flight is tonight though,” Keith told him.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Lance sighed.

“Sorry. Just so you know, when a manager says you’ll be back on a certain day, that’s manager speak for leaving the afternoon before.

“What time is our flight?” Lance asked.

“Two,” Keith answered.

“We got time! Let’s finish these pancakes and work on some lyrics!” Hunk exclaimed. 

     Lance nodded and finished up the last one for Keith. He handed his boyfriend the plate and rushed back to Hunks computer. Hunk had already beat him to it, and Keith smiled at the scrambling boys. They immediately turned the music from earlier back on and gave it another listen. Keith dressed his pancakes in syrup and butter when he felt his phone buzz in his back pocket. He pulled it out and frowned at the message.

 

Shiro: _You should call your doctor back, he’s got some really good news for you_

 

     Keith turned off his phone and ignored it. When he sat on the couch with Hunk and Lance, they were already humming out a melody. Keith loved to hear Lance’s voice, and it was so interesting to watch them work together.

“What kinda lyrics do we want? We could totally do something kinda haunting like ‘Austin’, but like maybe a little more light hearted?” Hunk suggested.

“Mm…what about something like ‘Lovers eyes’? It’s got such a smooth sound to it, and with the classical piano, I dunno if anything but a romantic undertone would really work,” Lance responded. Hunk hummed and continued listening.

“You have a good point,” he murmured.

“Like…this part…” Lance skipped back in the song a little. This was the part in the song when Keith woke up. “With something like… _loving you, all day long_ ,” when Lance sang out the melody, Keith nearly melted.

“Oooo…I like that,” Hunk grinned. Lance nodded.

“Yeah?” Hunk nodded back.

“Yeah.”

“Keith, what do you think?” Lance asked as Keith finished his last bite of pancake. He licked his lips and nodded.

“I dunno much about music, but that sounds good to me,” he agreed.

“Awesome!”

     Keith smiled at Lance’s enthusiasm, but was distracted by another buzz from his phone. He licked his fingers clean and checked the device.

Shiro: _are you awake yet? It’s getting kinda late here. Anyways, I need you in the gym once you’re back home. We should really talk._

     Once again, Keith ignored it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmu:
> 
> Snapchat: ksenialynns  
> Insta: @lynnart1998  
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com


	11. Closed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There’s something wrong with Keith.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: mentions of past attempted suicide, depression, dysphoria

     Keith slept on the plane ride home while Lance was still working on the song. Falling asleep to the sound of an angels voice was easier than Keith thought it would be. Usually he would need total silence, but the sound of Lance repeating the same beautiful line of lyrics until he got it right was so unbelievably calming. When he woke up they were landed and Lance was slumped over on his laptop. He smiled and stretched before walking over to his boyfriend.

“Lance,” he whispered.

“Mmm…” The musician hummed. Keith pulled out his headphones, and then gently moved the laptop out of the way to close it.

“Babe, were here,” he said. Lance finally started to wake up.

“Mm…babe?” He murmured. Keith blushed.

“Yeah. You’re a big baby. Now get up,” despite his mean words, his voice was still soft and warm. Lance blinked up at him and smiled.

“If I’m such a baby, will you carry me out?” He asked. Keith rolled his eyes and turned to grab his bag.

“Get up,” he replied.

“Awww…c’mon, I need a big strong man to carry me away,” Lance groaned and put his laptop back into his backpack. Keith was silent for a moment, and then walked back over to Lance to give him a kiss.

“You’ll be fine,” he said and walked off the plane.

“Wait!” Lance scrambled after him, and Keith laughed as he caught up to him. How cute.

 

* * *

 

 

“Okay, Keith. Thirty pounds, ten reps,” Shiro said as Keith piled the weights into the machine. “I’ve been letting you slack off during the holidays, but it’s time to get back into shape.”

“Yessir,” Keith nodded and sat in the machine. He started on the reps, and Shiro counted for him. Once he got to five reps he told Keith to stop for a moment.

“Okay, dont push yourself too hard,” Shiro teased. Keith chuckled a little and took a drink from his water bottle.

“Did you call your doctor back?” Shiro asked. Keith ignored him and immediately started his last five reps. “Keith?”

“No,” he answered finally.

“You should, I think you’ll be really happy. As your personal trainer, you gave me access to your health records-“

“I know,” Keith interrupted. Shiro frowned.

“That’s enough reps,” he said. Keith stopped and drank more.

“I can do more.”

“Keith, what’s wrong?” Shiro asked.

“Nothing,” Keith lied.

“You can’t lie to me, I know you too well,” Shiro countered. Keith gripped his knees and sighed.

“I know what it’s about,” he said.

“Then shouldn’t that make you happy? You’ve been talking about this for _years_ now,” Shiro reminded him.

“I dunno…” Keith mumbled.

“You have your referral, you’ve been cleared for it, mentally and physically, the only thing you need to do is call your doctor and confirm that you’re ready,” Shiro told him.

“What if I’m not ready?” Keith whispered. Shiro was quiet for a moment, then he crouched in front of Keith to look at him eye to eye.

“Are you okay?” Shiro asked. Keith looked away from his adoptive brother.

“I’m…just thinking about it again. There’s…there’s side effects, y’know? It…it might shorten my life-“

“You’ve already tried to kill your self because you _didn’t_  have it,” Shiro reminded him. Keith clenched his teeth and self consciously touched his sternum over his sweaty shirt. “You’ve been depressed for _years_. This could actually help you,” Shiro continued.

“I…I just…don’t know anymore,” Keith muttered. Shiro frowned.

“Why?”

“Because.”

“Keith…” Shiro stood up. “If you don’t tell me what’s bothering you, I’m gonna schedule another appointment with your shrink.”

“Shiro, I’m-“

“Don’t tell me that you’re fine,” Shiro cut him off. “You came to me and asked me to help you build muscle like a _man_. This isn’t like you,” he insisted. Keith sighed and buried his face in his hands.

“I…I-I dunno…” Keith repeated. Shiro stood in front of Keith for a good minute before sighing.

“Twenty more reps. Then move on to shoulders, then biceps, and finish up with squats,” he instructed and turned to leave. Keith’s head jerked up when he realized Shiro was leaving.

“Wait-“

“Twenty reps each. Don’t forget to breathe and drink water,” he continued as he reached the door.

“Shiro-“

“And you’re appointment is tomorrow,” Shiro finished before leaving the private gym. 

     Keith’s jaw hung as he stared at where Shiro once was. Eventually, it shut, but not before a tear slid down his face. What a shitty work out.

 

* * *

 

 

     Lance was surprised to come home to an empty hotel room. Usually Keith was in his bed or in his living room. After a long day of more performances and interviews, he could use some cuddling to unwind. He looked all over the hotel, but couldn’t find his boyfriend.

“Keith?” He called. No response. He took out his phone and called. No answer.

     While he was worried, he was sure Keith was okay. Maybe he passed out at his apartment, or maybe he was working late, or perhaps he was just hanging out with Shiro or someone else. There were a few possibilities of what he was doing, but he was still kind of uncomfortable. Mostly because he missed Keith, but also because he didn’t know what he was doing. Usually Coran gave him an idea of Keith’s schedule, but today he had no clue. He tried to distract himself by working in the song again, but it was nearly impossible. Eventually he called again. This time there was an answer.

“Keith’s phone, this is his manager speaking,” Allura’s voice filled his ears.

“Allura? Where’s Keith?” Lance asked.

“Lance?”

“Yeah?”

“Oh, he had an appointment today, and now he’s…kinda locked up in his room,” Allura told him.

“Wait, what? What kind of appointment? Is he okay?” Lance questioned.

“He’s…he’ll be okay. He just doesn’t like the shrink,” Allura said vaguely.

“Can I come over? I wanna see him.”

“Uh, its probably best to see him in the morning. He’s probably exhausted,” Allura said. “He did want to see you though, but that was before…” she trailed off.

“Before what?” Lance was just as eager as he sounded.

“Uh, Nothing…er, not really my place to tell. You can see him in the morning.”

“Can I at least talk to him now?” Lance begged.

“It’s not a good time. I’m sorry, Lance,” she said. Lance sighed.

“Alright. I’ll be over there around nine tomorrow.”

“Sounds good. Goodnight, Lance.”

“Night…”

 

* * *

 

 

     Shiro came over while Keith was still in his room. Allura was sayin the couch with her arms crossed, but she quickly wiped at her face when she heard Shiro unlocking the door. He stopped when he saw her smile at him. It was forced, and her eyes were puffy and red. Dead give away.

“What happened?” He asked breathlessly. Allura opened her mouth to speak, but eventually shook her head and looked down. Her hair was down, and it was obvious she had been running her hands through it. Shiro sat down next to her.

“What’s wrong?” He asked. She shrugged.

“I just feel bad, y’know? All those…womanly hormones…Keith is just as distant as ever,” she said.

“He’s always gonna be like that. He’s even like that with Lance,” Shiro said.

“They probably think I’m some terrible woman…forcing Keith to act a certain way, wear certain things, and present himself as a woman…” she sighed. “It’s just how the media sees him…I dunno what else to tell him besides-“

“Besides go on T,” Shiro whispered. She nodded.

“And now…he’s not even talking to the shrink about it. He just sat there for two hours,” Allura told him.

“That’s ridiculous even for Keith,” Shiro said.

“I know…” she sighed. “I just want to be someone he can trust, you know? I know he isn’t really a girl, but…sometimes we connect. Sometimes things click between us, and I think he likes it when they do. I just…don’t know how to make us click more often.”

“You’re lucky you click with him at all. Some people never even get to experience that with him,” Shiro said. Allura nodded. “But I know what you mean. Especially when he’s being distant. I just want him to know that people care about him, y’know?” She nodded again.

“Because…the last time we didn’t really pay enough attention to his problems it turned out horribly wrong,” Allura’s voice sounded hoarse.

“He still touches the scar every now and then,” Shiro said.

“As small as it is, it has quite the big impact on all of us.”

“How long has he been in his room?” Shiro asked.

“Ever since we got home,” Allura answered.

“Have you tried talking to him?” Shiro asked. Allura shook her head.

“He told me he never wanted to talk to me again,” fresh tears rolled down her face. Shiro was quick to wipe them away.

“I’ll talk to him if he’s not asleep yet,” Shiro assured her. Allura nodded.

“Thank you…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmu:
> 
> Snapchat: ksenialynns  
> Insta: @lynnart1998  
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com


	12. Open

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith opens up, and then breaks down

“Keith? Are you awake?” Shiro opened the door to Keith’s room, and found the model sitting in front of his window-wall. He was watching the traffic and the lights.

“Can I have my phone back?” Keith asked.

“You know the consequences to this type of behavior, Keith,” Shiro replied coldly.

“I just want to know if Lance called,” Keith sighed.

“I’m sure he did, but if you want to know for sure, you’ll have to ask Allura.”

“Okay.”

“And apologize to her,” he added. Keith was quiet for a moment.

“Fair enough,” he muttered. Shiro came over and sat next to his adopted brother. They watched the city lights in silence for a minute before Shiro had to speak again.

“I heard you didn’t talk to your shrink today.”

“There was nothing to say to him. Why would I trust a stranger with my problems just because he has a college degree in mind science?” Keith retorted. Shiro shook his head and smiled.

“You have a point, but it’s important you talk to one of us,” Shiro said. Keith didn’t respond. “Keith?”

“Can you bring Allura in here?” He requested. Shiro was shocked, but complied anyways.

“Of course,” he went to fetch Allura from the couch, and when he came back Keith was on the bed this time. He finally made eye contact with both of them and they stood at the end of his bed together.

“Just Allura…please,” Keith murmured turning red. Shiro hesitated for a moment, but eventually nodded and left. Suddenly the air was thicker when it was just Allura and Keith.

“Is there…is there something I can help you with?” Allura asked. Keith licked his lips.

“I dunno…I wanted to apologize, and…” he trailed off and looked out the window. He was clearly embarrassed and nervous. “As you know…I’m having second thoughts about transitioning,” Keith announced. Allura nodded.

“Shiro told me before your appointment, and I’m very concerned about you,” she said honestly. Keith nodded and ran his fingers over his sternum.

“I dunno if you’re the right person to open up to about this…” he sighed. Allura sat at the end of his bed and touched his knee comfortingly. He smiled slightly. “…but you’re the only one I know who could possibly understand what I’m feeling. You’re the only girl in my life and…I never realized how hard it is to open up to men about my feelings,” he explained. Allura nodded.

“It’s only natural, Keith. I know you don’t fully identify as a girl, but I’m not surprised you still have quote n’ quote…’girl problems’,” she replied. He nodded.

“Exactly. Whenever I’d try and talk about my feelings with a guy he’d brush it off, but Lance…Lance is different,” Keith spoke.

“I can tell. You’re really lucky to have such a wonderful guy,” Allura said. Her hand was shaking slightly against Keith’s leg. She felt a mixture of excitement and shame. Excitement because she has wanted this for so long, and shame because Keith was obviously hurting and she shouldn’t feel happy about it even if he was opening up.

“He…he makes me feel like _me_ ,” Keith said. “But at the same time…I still feel like the me everyone wants me to be. Like, the _not_ me.”

“That must be confusing.” Keith nodded.

“I didn’t think I’d be able to transition so soon…I’m scared, like…really fucking scared,” anxiety started to infect his voice, and Allura held his hand instead. “What if Ford cancels my contract because I can’t do as many female positions? If I’m gonna go on T, I know I definitely want top surgery too, but what would everyone think about that?”

“Keith-“

“What if people think I’m being fake? What if they hate me? What if they think I was just using genderfluid as a label so I wouldn’t let people know how trans I am? What if-“

“Keith, you don’t need to-“

“What if Lance isn’t attracted to me anymore?” Keith finished his questions with that, and he didn’t even realize he was crying. Allura was so shocked by what he said that she had nothing to say back. “What if he doesn’t like me anymore?” Keith croaked. Before Allura could judge if it was the right choice or not, she moved closer and hugged Keith tightly.

“Lance won’t stop liking you,” she whispered.

“B-but what if he _does_ ,” Keith stammered.

“Then he’s a bad person, and you get to weed him out early,” Allura assured him. Keith sobbed into her shoulder.

“I-I…I think I’m f-falling in…in love with him,” Keith cried. Allura’s heart melted, but in a sad way. It melted with sympathy and grief for Keith’s pain. She just wanted to fix it for him.

“If you think you might love him…it’s important to talk to him about this,” Allura murmured. Keith sighed. “He called tonight. He was really worried about you,” she said.

“Was he?” Keith questioned. Allura nodded and finally released the hug. She sniffled with him.

“He’ll be here at nine in the morning,” she informed him. Keith smiled.

“He doesn’t have to come…”

“He insisted. He begged to talk to you, but…I didn’t know if you’d want to be disturbed,” she said.

“That’s…understandable,” Keith agreed.

“But, you’ll see him very soon. It’s already almost midnight,” she said.

“Yeah…it is.”

“Why dont you get some rest. You’ve been through a lot,” Allura suggested. Keith nodded.

“I’ll stay on the couch tonight to make sure you’re okay, okay?”

“Okay…”

“Shiro might stay too, but he might leave. Are you okay with that?” She asked. He nodded.

“Yeah…I wont freak out if he’s not here in the morning,” Keith replied.

“Okay,” Allura stood up. “If you need anything, don’t be afraid to wake me up.”

“I won’t,” Keith replied and smiled. Allura smiled back and then turned to leave the room.

 

* * *

 

 

     When Lance got to Keith’s apartment it was 8:48. He was too restless and worried to wait another minute, so he just sent a text saying he was coming a little earlier. Either Allura or Keith himself received the message because five minutes later there was a reply saying “okay. The doors unlocked”. Sure enough, Lance opened the door with ease. Allura was passed out on the couch, and Keith was in the kitchen looking in his fridge. Relief filled Lance when he saw those deep eyes settled on him again. Keith looked him up and down casually and pulled out a pitcher of water with fruit in it.

“Took you long enough,” Keith murmured and poured himself a glass. Lance noticed his lack of pants, and shrugged off his jacket.

“I’m already early,” Lance replied.

“I’ve been up since eight. I can’t believe you’ve left me waiting for so long,” Keith said coyly. He peeked at Lance over his shoulder and then looked back to his glass.

“I didn’t know that,” Lance said as he came up behind Keith. He wrapped his arms around his waist and kissed his nape. Keith hummed and drank his water. “Sorry I kept you waiting.”

“Apology accepted.”

“Are you okay?” Lance asked. Keith hesitated for a moment.

“I’m better now that you’re here,” he avoided the answer and turned around to face his boyfriend with a flirty grin. Lance smiled back, but his eyes were still earnest.

“What happened? Allura said you saw your shrink, and she didn’t imply that it went well,” Lance continued. Keith shrugged.

“It’s always hard going back to a therapist. You think you’ve gotten through it, and then it hits you again like a ton of bricks,” Keith mumbled into his cup.

“What hit you like a ton of bricks?” Lance questioned. His thumb stroked above Keith’s hip, and the action was so painfully affectionate he was suddenly overwhelmed by the emotion Lance lit inside him.

“Nothing…I mean…it’s not important,” he lied and put his glass down. 

     Before Lance could ask another question, Keith was suddenly kissing him. Pale arms wrapped around Lance’s neck, and soft lips were pressed hard into his mouth. He tried to break away to continue their conversation, but Keith was set on making sure they didn’t part. His head always felt foggy when Keith kissed him, and he felt even foggier when Keith pulled him closer with his strong arms. It was easy to forget how strong Keith was. His slim arms barely showed the compact muscle underneath them, but Lance was sure if he flexed they would be bigger than his own biceps. That kind of turned him on.

     Then something weird happened. Keith pulled Lance’s hands down his body until they cupped his ass. It wasn’t that impressive of an ass in terms of roundness. It was muscular as well, but not as feminine as some pictures suggested. Also, Keith has never invited Lance to touch such an intimate part of his body before. That worried him. Finally, he successfully pulled away.

“Keith, what are you doing?” He asked.

“I wanna have sex,” he blurted. Lance frowned.

“Keith-“

“I want you…i-inside me, a-and…” Keith started to look more sick than aroused. “A-and I want…I…” he was turning red.

“Hey, slow down,” Lance whispered softly. Keith squeezed his eyes shut and blinked away the threatening tears.

“I just…wanna know what it feels like with someone I like…someone I _really_ like,” Keith said. Lance’s brows furrowed.

“You look like you’re about to throw up,” Lance told him. Keith shook his head.

“No, I’m just…a little nervous,” he insisted and leaned in to kiss Lance’s neck.

“Keith.”

“Lance,” he breathed.

“I’m not gonna have sex with you right now,” his voice was serious, and Keith paused against his pulse. He pulled back and bit his lip to stop it from quivering. “There’s something obviously wrong, okay? I don’t think having sex is good for you right now,” he explained.

“I’m…fine…” Keith stammered. He was crying again.

“Keith…” Lance pulled him into a tight hug. “I’m sorry. I just-“ he stopped talking when Keith shoved him away. The model turned back to his water and took a drink. “Keith-“

“Get out of my apartment,” he said.

“Keith, c’mon-“

“I said get out!” He snapped. “We’re done! We’re over!” He continued. Allura finally woke up when she heard yelling, and watched in confusion as Keith yelled at Lance.

“What? Keith, you can’t be serious-“

“You’re driving me crazy, Lance! I…I can’t do this!” Keith shouted. Allura shot up.

“Keith, stop,” she said firmly. The boys looked over at Allura, and Keith was the first to ignore her.

“I can’t do this,” he muttered and pushed past Lance to storm into his bedroom.

“Keith!” Lance called after him and went into his room. 

     Allura was too nervous to leave Keith alone by himself in his current state to stop Lance, and followed after him quickly. When she entered the room she saw Keith crying into Lance’s shoulder. He was shaking and sobbing like last night, and she started to cry too. Keith clung to Lance tightly, and Lance merely held him tighter. Allura wiped her tears quickly and turned around to leave the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmu
> 
> Snapchat: ksenialynns  
> Insta: @ lynnart1998  
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com


	13. Why

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little more about Keith’s day…
> 
> (TW: SELF HARM, DYSPHORIA, BINGING AND PURGING, MENTIONS OF EATING DISORDERS, SHITY EX BOYFRIENDS WHO SUCK ASS)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you get into it, if you already haven’t, I kinda feel like my trans Keith fics are more or less the same? Like something horrible happened to Keith and he’s not in a very good emotional place and there’s usually a bad ex that he can’t get ride of either literally or like emotionally? Is it just me? I kinda feel bad for falling into the same storyline of Keith suffering and Lance’s constantly lifting him back up. It’s a very good feels kinda story, which is why I think I like it so much, but I dunno. I just want to write trans Keith as authentically and realistically as possible, and realistically a lot of trans people suffer from depression anxiety and face a lot of hardships. What do you guys think? I’d really like to know if you all noticed this trend in my writing or if I’m just being self conscious. Thanks, and I hope you enjoy <3
> 
> (Also it’s currently 12:54 am and I’m too tired to edit my eyes feel like they’re melting Sorry)

“Allura?” Coran’s voice came out warm and comforting through the phone. It made Allura sigh with relief.

“Are you free? I think I need some tea,” she said quietly as she waited for Shiro to come.

“Of course, my dear. I have all the time in the world for you. Are you coming over?” He asked.

“Yeah…but only after Shiro comes by. Keith…” she sighed. “He’s worse than last night. I thought I helped him a little, but…he just blew up on Lance, and I just need to get away,” she said.

“Oh dear. Lance is performing on New Year’s Eve. That stress probably isn’t good for him,” Coran muttered out loud.

“I know, but…Lance is taking it a lot better than I am right now.”

“He _does_ handle Keith a lot better than any of us do…” Allura looked up from the couch as Shiro walked in.

“Hey, what happened?” Shiro asked. Allura held up her finger politely.

“Shiro’s here, I’ll see you when I get there,” she said.

“Alright darling. Don’t keep me waiting.”

“Bye,” she hung up the phone and put down her hand. Shiro was still waiting for her response. “I’m not sure…entirely. Lance came before nine, and I was asleep, so Keith must’ve let him in. All I know is I woke up to Keith screaming at him and storming into his room,” Allura explained to the best of her abilities.

“Where’s Lance?” Shiro questioned. 

“In Keith’s room. He stopped crying a few minutes ago…either he’s asleep, or Lance somehow calmed him down,” Allura told him.

“Okay. You look tired,” Shiro noticed. Allura nodded, her eyes heavy. “You go take a break with Coran. Take a nap too. I’ll be here until you’re ready to come back,” he said. Allura nodded and forced a smile.

“Thank you so much, Shiro. I don’t know what I’d do without you,” she sighed and got up. Shiro pulled her into a hug and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“I’m just glad I can help,” he said blushing slightly. She nodded and smiled genuinely.

“I’ll text you when I’m on my way back,” she whispered. Shiro nodded, and she left.

     The apartment was quiet. It concerned Shiro, and he walked into Keith’s room to check up on the boys. He saw Lance holding Keith against his chest and lightly rocking him back and forth. Keith’s arms were too tense around Lance’s torso for him to be asleep, but Shiro still approached him as if he was. Lance looked up, and Keith blinked.

“How’s it going?” Shiro asked gently as he sat down on the edge of the bed.

“Its okay. I’m not fully caught up, but I think I accidentally stressed Keith out. Maybe I didn’t communicate properly or something. I take full responsibility,” Lance said. Keith snuggled closer.

“Yeah, Keith can be a bit of a drama king, huh?” Shiro smirked and nudged Keith. The model opened his eyes again and gave Shiro a grumpy look.

“No, I think there’s something else. I don’t wanna talk like he’s not in the room, but he stopped responding to me after he stopped crying,” Lance said. Shiro nodded.

“Well maybe if we talk about what we think is going on, Keith can tell us if we’re wrong. Right?” He directed his question at Keith. Navy eyes flickered open again, and he nodded after a small hesitation. “Good, so what do you think is up?”

“I’m not sure exactly, but…maybe he’s under a lot of stress because he just met my family. He spent two days with me, Hunk, my mom, all my aunts and uncles and family friends…it was probably a lot,” Lance mused. Keith shook his head. Lance looked down at his boyfriend for a moment and sighed.

“How much do you know, Lance?” Shiro asked. The musician blinked at Shiro.

“Uh…I know that he went to a therapist yesterday, and that it didn’t go well. I know that I upset him earlier, and I know that he’s really strong and kinda crushing my lungs,” Lance said. Keith’s arms loosened.

“Alright…” Shiro looked down at Keith, and he was looking away with a worried expression in his eyes. “Keith.” Those worried eyes looked back at Shiro.

“Either you tell him, or I will…”

 

* * *

 

 

     Allura sighed into the warm cup of tea Coran made her. It reminded her of home, and of her father. Ever since she left Keith’s apartment she felt a weight lift off her shoulders. Unfortunately that weight was replaced with guilt that she tried to ignore since it infected her. Coran sat across from her on his balcony. She smiled after she took a sip and looked at him.

“Just like mother,” she hummed and looked out on the city.

“Ah yes. I always strive to make tea as good as your mother,” he replied.

“I miss her,” Allura said.

“Did you visit her for Christmas?” Coran asked. She shook her head.

“No, I…I was too busy with work. I did call her though and promised I’d visit next month,” Allura answered.

“You work too hard. Honestly, when was the last time you saw your family on Christmas?”

“Uh…two thousand and…fifteen I believe? That’s right before Keith started modeling for Ford,” she responded.

“I suppose it’s harder with an expensive client. Especially what happened after he got signed,” Coran hummed. “I know I’ve been stressing a lot more since Lance picked up. I think my hairline is receding faster,” Coran joked. Allura chuckled.

“You age like fine wine, Coran,” she assured him.

“Thank you, sweetheart,” he smiled. Allura sipped her tea again.

“It’s almost been a year,” she whispered. Coran nodded, knowing exactly what she was talking about. “I still can’t believe it, y’know?” She muttered.

“I bet it’s easy to distract yourself with Keith,” Coran hummed. Allura nodded.

“I miss him terribly.”

“I know you do. I bet he misses you too.”

“I was going to visit his grave while I was back home next month. Do you have anything you’d like me to leave?” She asked.

“No, but I do have something of his for you,” he replied and set down his tea. 

     Allura watched Coran as he stood up and ventured back into his flat. He came back with a letter sealed with wax. She recognized it as the wax her father would use for holiday cards. Coran sat back next to her and handed her the letter.

“He wanted me to give you this letter one year after he died. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind that it’s a few weeks early,” Coran said. Allura accepted the letter. Her breath trembled as she looked at the familiar handwriting on the back.

“I can wait until the twelfth,” she murmured.

“Alright, you might want to read it alone or with family. Alfor always has a way with words, you know,” Coran said. Allura slipped the letter back into her purse.

“Of course,” she said and picked up her tea again.

 

* * *

 

 

     Keith came out as genderfluid in the middle of 2016. Coming out to the public was happier and prettier than coming out to himself. When Keith realized just how bad his gender dysphoria was, he was in the middle of a horrible relationship, and his face was just starting to pop up in magazines and advertisements. It was only until his dead name was starting at Keith right in the face in public did he realize how much he hated it. The only problem was that everyone loved it.

     His boyfriend at the time hated it when Keith expressed any form of masculinity. He treated Keith like a trophy, and showered him with gifts of tiny dresses and slimming shoes. After all, Keith’s feet were pretty masculine. If he didn’t wax the hair off his toes, his boyfriend would make him feel disgusting about it. He was greedy, and disconnected from reality. While he was unbelievably handsome, he was just as equally disgusting in just heart and soul. Keith only stayed with him because it got him a lot of press, and while it was superficial of him, his justification was that he’d break it off once he landed this contract with Ford Models. Still, even when the deal passed, they didn’t break up until three months after.

     The short story is that Keith hit a breathing point and finally dumped his ass. The long story is painful, and a year of built up resentment and self hatred. Every time he gave into his boyfriends demands he hated himself more. He would have anxiety attacks between shoots because his bra was too tight, and he’d scrub his skin raw even when all his makeup was off afterwards. No matter what he did, he never felt clean after they had sex. He felt so belittled, and objectified under that greedy gaze. Once he was gone, Keith would cry in the shower until he could manage to calm down enough to go to bed. He went through it alone. He told no one.

     The first step to recovery was when he started training with Shiro. It was in secret, but he asked his brother to train him to build muscles so he’d appear more masculine. At the time he was skinny, fighting the urge to purge every crème brûlée and expensive steak dinner his boyfriend would feed him and then make him feel guilty about. His bones weren’t visible yet, but he was scared they would. It was no secret models would often suffer from eating disorders, but Keith didn’t have an eating disorder. He had a horrible boyfriend that manipulated him into binging and then guilted him into purging. He knew he needed help with that.

     Once he had a healthier diet and work out routine, he felt better. He felt better about his body when he was alone, but once his boyfriend was back, it was back to square one. Dresses, skirts, frills, designer names, matching hand bags. It drove him insane. It was one thing when he wore it for a shoot and then instantly took it off a couple hours later, but wearing it in public? It made him literally sick. Date nights consisted of Keith excusing himself to the ladies room and throwing up the expensive dinner his boyfriend paid for. He put up with it until he finally couldn’t take it anymore.

     That night was a night Keith constantly tried to forget. Sometimes it would pop up in a dream, but for the most part he repressed it. He was dressed in a tight black dress just as his boyfriend liked it. Hair curled and styled to perfection, and the most expensive jewelry in New York adorning his neck and ears. His shoes tall and skinny, and his purse matching the shiny material adorning his feet. In his mind he looked like a clown. His heavy makeup made him itch, and the dress made him feel not like himself. Like he was someone else.

     It was even worse when his boyfriend showed up and instantly took notice to his arms. It was the first time Keith wore a strapless dress around him in months, and he instantly noticed the faint muscle. He was not happy.

     The evening ended up with Keith crying, because of his boyfriend once again, instead of being taken out to dinner. He sat on the floor and tugged off his shoes, muttering about how he’s given up. His boyfriend scoffed and shook his head, but didn’t have a chance to say anything when Keith stood up and chucked his purse at his mirror. It cracked, and Keith continued. He threw his shoes across the living room, tears streaming down his face, and he pulled down his dress to literally rip his bra in half. His hands instantly covered him and he sobbed as his fingers clutched the soft tissue. He pulled his dress up and found comfort in how it restricted his chest. Then he started to hurt himself.

     By then his boyfriend had called Allura, but he was already clawing off his jewelry. The precious jewels cut into his chest, and he continued to scratch at his sternum with his neatly manicured finger nails. Blood stained his fingers, and he couldn’t stop trying to peel his skin off. Skin that didn’t feel like belonged to him. His boyfriend restrained him before he cut too deep, and suddenly Allura was breaking into the apartment with Shiro following her closely behind. Shiro pulled off Keith’s boyfriend, and Allura held Keith’s hands away from his chest. Soon, they were in Shiro’s car on their way to the hospital.

     It was hard keeping the story on lock down, but Allura managed to keep it quiet. Not one story about Keith’s trip to the hospital leaked, and it was a relief to everyone. They had long and hard conversations over the following couple weeks, and Keith had his first appointment with a therapist. He was quickly diagnosed with gender dysphoria, and was recommended to consider taking hormones and undergoing surgery. Keith was terrified and relieved at the same time. The whole time he felt like he was going insane. His boyfriend, of course, advised him against it, but once he voiced his opinion on the matter he wasn’t Keith’s boyfriend anymore.

     Since then, Keith has been considering it. While he had very bad body dysphoria, he still wasn’t certain what the right thing to do was. He eased into different labels until eventually he came out as gender fluid. The media ate it up, and he felt comfortable with himself for once. The scar on his chest was small once it healed up completely, but he’d never forget why he did it. He let someone control him and make him feel awful about him. About his body. He’d never let that happen again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmu:
> 
> Snapchat: ksenialynns  
> Insta: lynnart1998  
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com
> 
> Or leave a comment and I’ll try to respond lol

**Author's Note:**

> Find me other places!
> 
> Snapchat: ksenialynns
> 
> Tumblr: fryingpanss.tumblr.com
> 
> Twitter: @n0t_an_artist


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